Lock Down
by HydeLuver
Summary: They said going to New York was a bad idea, but he didn't listen. Takes place after "Punk Chick."
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Welcome to my 20th story! I'm excited to write this one because it's a little different from the others I have written. I hope you enjoy it!**

Hyde follows Chrissy out of the beat up van and is thankful to finally be able to stretch his limbs. After multiple hours on the road and going from one cheap motel to another, they have finally reached their destination. They stand in front of a tall, gray building, gathering the few belongings they have. Hyde takes a look around at his new home, and is quickly reminded of how low on the totem pole he is. Garbage bags are in a huge pile on the left side of the building's entrance, loud obnoxious music is blaring from every direction and there are many gum wads stuck on the floor. Guess it's true what Kitty said, people in New York do spit on the ground.

"Welcome home" Chrissy says, a smirk on her face. She grabs her duffel bag from the ground and leads him inside and up five flights of stairs to a red door. The red pain is chipping and a sticker indicating the apartment number: 1D. Chrissy knocks loudly on the door and is greeted by a tall guy, his hair is long and frazzled and his brown shirt and tattered brown hair lets Hyde assume that he's either unemployed or too cheap to buy decent clothes.

After leaning over and giving Chrissy a hug, the guy steps aside and waves them into the apartment. Once inside, Hyde scans the room, taking in every detail about the small apartment he will now be calling home. Every wall is nearly covered in posters, from Led Zeppelin to Bob Dylan. Ashtrays sat on top of nearly every surface of the room, many of them nearly filled to the rim. The one thing Hyde immediately picks up on is the haziness in the air. It's a familiar haze and he can't help but think of home. As he takes in the rest of the place, he comes to the conclusion that he will like it here. Over by the living room, five people sit on a long couch passing two blunts among them. Chrissy and the tall, frazzled haired guy walk over to them and they take turns introducing themselves to Hyde.

Sitting down with them for a few minutes, Hyde discovers that these people are his roommates. He's taken aback at first, not understanding how so many people can fit in the small apartment. Not wanting to seem like a square, he decides not to question it and instead get a feel of their personalities. Besides being obvious dope heads, he finds out three of them are unemployed, and two are a couple who apparently do nothing but fight and have loud sex.

Chrissy and Hyde are then shown to the bedroom, a small, blank space not bigger than his apartment back home in Point Place. A twin size bed takes up most of the space and an empty dresser stands just far enough from the window to allow a bit of light to fill the room. Chrissy walks into the room first and throws her bag aside. She jumps on the bed, laughing historically as she bounces on it. Hyde smirks and follows suit, making sure to land on top of her.

"We should have a protest to christen this new bed" she says, not so subtly.

"Hell yeah" Hyde responds and hungrily starts kissing her neck. A mix of perfume and sweat fill his taste buds and he can't control his urge to take her. He has finally met a girl who is just like him, rebellious, spontaneous and not wanting to get attached. Even though they will be living together, they have established their "single-hood."

Thinking about how easy she gives herself to him turns him on and he is quickly pulling up her t-shirt and working his hands down her body.

An hour later, they throw on their clothes and walk outside of the bedroom to join their roommates for a few joints. As they claim a spot on the couch, they quickly become part of the circle. Hyde listens on as these people talk about their shit jobs, or lack of one, the corruption in the government and all things anarchy. He nods his head in agreement and occasionally chimes in. He tells them about life in the Midwest. From the conformists and lack of opportunity for the poor working man, he fills them in on the struggles of his teenage existence.

His friends back home never understood his ideologies. Donna came the closest, but even she went home to a beautiful home and none of his ideas applied to her. Then, to come across the country and meet these strangers who truly get him, makes him feel good.

Later that night, while Hyde and his roommate Joey are sitting around talking, someone who Hyde hadn't seen yet walks in. Joey immediately introduces him as Zeke, the person who leases the apartment and rents out the rooms. Zeke takes a seat on a nearby chair and instantly joins the conversation. Hyde quickly bonds with him over their love of Zeppelin and hatred of the "man."

It doesn't take long for Hyde to realize that Zeke is more radical than the rest of his roommates, or anyone he's ever met. Zeke engages Hyde and Joey in a conversation about civil liberties and expresses his dislike of pacifist leaders and shows a strong devotion to Malcolm X's early philosophies as well as the Black Panther Party.

"We can't have equality when pansy ass people are in power. The only way to get things done is to say fuck the government and get rid of as many people as you need to" Zeke forcefully says.

Hyde sits back and is impressed by Zeke's political stance.

"The white man only wants to keep us suppressed man. And I'm not talking about you 'cause you seem like a cool cat, but the ones who walk around in their fancy suits acting all uppity and shit. Man, fuck them, you know?" Zeke continues, bringing his fist down on the table.

Once again, Hyde nods in appreciation for finally finding someone willing to stand by their position, no matter how controversial it is.

After a few more minutes of discussing radical ideas and what solutions are available to change the way things are, the three men start their own circle. As the haziness around them increases and their words become more slurred, Hyde can't believe everyone was so against him coming to New York. This is where he belongs. This is where he'll prosper.


	2. Chapter 2

The next few days in New York are great. His transition to the big city is a smooth one and every day, Hyde feels more and more at home. He spends his days walking around, trying to navigate his way around the city. When he isn't wandering around, he's in the apartment, listening to music and getting stoned with his roommates. Every night Zeke comes over and they discuss politics and have a friendly debate over what exactly is wrong with the government.

Hyde is more than happy with his new life. No one busting his balls about finishing school or amounting to something greater than what his parents are. In New York, no one gives a damn about the next person, which is fine with him since he can just spend his days getting high and fucking Chrissy when he wants.

That's the good thing about her, she doesn't have any expectations and isn't looking to settle down. She is just as happy wasting the days with him. Hyde is living the dream. Well, _his _dream at least. Back in Point Place, his friends would start in on him about his "poor" life choices and he would have to deal with his drunk mother and uncle whoever of the day. In Point Place, he's known as the lowdown, dirty burnout who would be lucky to make it past eighteen. In New York, he's on his own, and he is just another face in the crowd. He can amount to something or absolutely nothing, and it would make no difference to the next person.

He has no one to tell him shit or expect it from him. He could wake up in the middle of the day, get high and go back to bed if he wants to.

His roommates encourage him to just "hang out" at two in the afternoon and they can have the age-old discussion about whether Samantha is hotter than Jeannie, but unlike back home, they didn't need to be cautious of the Formans walking in on their illegal activities and he doesn't have to listen to Eric talk about how much he wants to do it with Donna or Kelso bitch about his cheerleader girlfriend.

New York is fun and the people are cynical and selfish. To most people, life is a competition about making it to the top before everyone else. It's definitely a dog eat dog world, one which Hyde has no intention of joining. In his little apartment, with his countless roommates and joints, he can be detached from the world, almost a non-entity.

While his roommates make most of his days interesting, Chrissy fills his nights. She spends most of the day meeting with her punk band friend, rehearsing on the instruments or writing new songs. The only times Hyde sees her is when she comes home at nine, usually nursing a hangover from her daily drinking sessions or just as high as him. She will stumble into their bedroom, throw her belongings on the floor and dash to the bed. He would walk in after her to find her half-naked waiting for him to start a "protest."

Every night they make a joke about which cause they are fighting for. One night their protest is for equal rights, the next one is to stop child labor in some country thousands of miles away. Her moans would include hate words against the "man" or thanks to an almighty being she doesn't actually believe in.

Besides the occasional screams and moans, sex between them is relatively quiet. There is no need for foreplay or "how does this feel?" questions. Hyde can enjoy the silence and just get lost in the moment of satisfying her needs. He appreciates her lack of feelings towards him. It's what makes her fun, what makes her absolutely perfect for someone so emotionally damaged. Once they are done, they put on their clothes and go hang out with their roommates. There is no questions about how their day was or sweet comments about how much they love one another. Frankly, neither gives a damn about that. Whatever happened in the day is forgotten the moment he enters her and then _that_ is forgotten when they light up a joint.

Hyde quickly learns Chrissy's philosophy on love and sex: Love doesn't exist and sex is temporary. Cynical, like a true New Yorker.

On one particular night, about a week after they arrived, Chrissy comes home later and drunker than usual. Hyde has just finished a session with Zeke and Joey when she enters the apartment and immediately goes into the living room to find him. She walks towards him and grabs the collar of his shirt. Not minding the audience, she straddles his lap and kisses him, her hands exploring his lower body. Following her lead, Hyde forgets about the two men in the room and grabs a chunk of her hair to bring her face closer to his. His other hand moves down her body and rests on her butt.

After a few minutes, Hyde opens his eyes and sees that Joey and Zeke have excused themselves and now he can really enjoy her. He pulls his lips away from hers and aggressively pins her down on the couch so he's on top. Removing her shirt in one swift motion, he starts kissing her body, from her neck down to the area right above her bra. Her moans and wriggling body let him know she's enjoying it so he pushes on, not bothering to take it to their bedroom.

He lifts her up just enough to grant him access to the clasp of her bra and after struggling to unhook it for a few seconds, he pulls it down and admires her exposed breasts. He grins in admiration and brings his head down to take one into his mouth.

Sure he's just a seventeen year old kid, but he's had a lot of experience with the opposite sex. The girls back home found him alluring, thought it would be a wild adventure to get with the town bad boy. Before sex, they had all made it very clear that it was just to be a meaningless fling, which he didn't object to, and that no one could ever know, which he didn't care about.

As he got further into the moment with Chrissy, he thinks about all the girls he's been with and how even after the best sex of his life, he felt no emotional attachment to any of them. Even with Chrissy, who is his idea of a perfect woman, he can have sex and forget all about it a minute later. For a moment, the thought that he is incapable of getting close to someone, or loving another person, angers him and while he enters Chrissy, he rams into her wanting to get as close as possible.

If sex is the closest he can get to someone, then he'll just have to have sex all the time. Not that he wants to fall in love and be a nancy boy à la Eric Forman, but just for a moment, he wants to feel human.

Then, when the deed is done and he's satisfied, he can take on the role of a New Yorker, not that cynical and jaded are hard for him to do, even if he's just a kid from the Midwest.


	3. Chapter 3

The next two weeks in New York are still a lot of fun for Hyde and he's finally getting the hang of things. He and Chrissy would ride the subway and travel around the city. Between spending hours at record stores and eating at nearly run down diners, their days fly on by. For two people from the Midwest, they quickly adapt to life in the Big Apple. They don't stop and admire the buildings like tourists and have mastered the art of speed walking everywhere.

One of his favorite pastimes is going down to Lower Manhattan with Chrissy and his roommates to CBGB and listen to live music while getting as drunk as humanly possible. While people in Wisconsin are stuck listening to disco, New Yorkers are indulging in the new Punk era. While he is more a classic rock guy through and through, Hyde can never turn down a chance to rock out to The Clash, Joy Division or Ramones. Especially not when he has a hot babe by his side sucking on his neck and downing down shots with him.

Someone once told him New York is the land of temptation and nothing good could come from being there. Well, that person can go straight to hell because nothing compares to this. Coming from a place where the most exciting thing to do is score some dope to a city that literally never sleeps can be nothing but good. Let them keep their disco and perfectly quaffed hair, Steven Hyde and his unruly curls is drinking to all things Punk.

The thing about a big city is that it'll spit you out as fast as it took you in. This couldn't be more true than for a seventeen year old, unemployed kid from Point Place, Wisconsin. After several more weeks of boozing and partying, Chrissy brought it to Hyde's attention that their funds are quickly depleting. The small amount of money they have between the two of them is just enough for a month's rent and a few meals.

Between his lack of a job and the small income she brings in from shitty gigs, they would soon be homeless and starving. Frankly, his unemployment had not crossed his mind since they have managed to make due one way or another. Now, however, what they have is not nearly enough.

"Damn it, we need to figure this shit out Hyde. I'm not trying to be out there in the winter" Chrissy yells one day, her anarchic façade faltering. For someone so against the man, she surely has no problem joining "him" to make some money.

"We'll figure something out" Hyde says calmly as he takes another hit of the joint in his hand.

Chrissy gets mad at his nonchalance and snatches the blunt out of his hands. Being completely dazed, Hyde doesn't completely register her anger and when she suddenly storms out of the room, slamming the door behind her, he bursts into laughter.

A few hours later, while Hyde sits in the living room with Joey and some girl he's picked up, Chrissy returns home, still visibly angry as hell. Without bothering to greet them, she walks into the bedroom and Hyde hesitantly follows behind her. He watches as she paces frantically around the room, opening and slamming drawers shut. Part of him is wary of what might happen next. For all he knows, she might decide to kick his ass to the curb and kick him out, leaving him homeless in an unknown city. The other part of him is intrigued and slightly amused. He walks over to the bed and lays back on it, resting his head on his folded hands. He remains silent, knowing that anything he might say could set her off and make things worse.

Chrissy opens a drawer, tosses a shirt in it and slams it shut. She turns to him abruptly. "I talk to Zeke. He has a friend that can hook us up with some money. I'm going to call him later and set something up" she informs him firmly, her mind obviously set on the idea.

"Cool" Hyde simply replies. She rolls his eyes at the lack of reaction and storms out of the room.

As soon as the door closes behind her, Hyde starts thinking about how much easier his life in Point Place was. Even though he was far from rich and his reputation as a burnout followed him everywhere, he always had a good time. His friends were always around and even with two bucks in his pocket, he could breathe easily. New York is proving to be too damn expensive, and he should have been better prepared for the move. Instead, he chased a complete stranger who, despite being incredibly hot, is obviously not as anti-establishment as he thought.

A short while later, Hyde steps out into the living room and finds Chrissy sitting on the corner of the couch talking on the phone. He walks over and sits next to her.

"It's just two of us...Yeah...No I'm sure we can figure something out, we're desperate...Right..." he hears her say to the person over the phone and wonders what kind of laborious job she is signing them up for. He leans back on the couch and waits for her to get off to see what the plan is. Across from him, his roommate Jeff is watching some random girl prepare a needle. Hyde notices a rubber band wrapped Jeff's arm and his roommate smacking his forearm in search of a vein.

Hyde watches the girl lift a lighter to the pipe and smoke clouding the glass bubble at the tip. Her thin blonde hair is pulled back in a tight bun, several strands sticking out in every direction. Her barely there shirt displaying her frail figure. Hyde can tell that she's already not fully coherent and can only imagine how much drugs she's already on. She looks no older than twenty, just a kid like him.

Watching his roommate and the girl he's with shooting up is brand new territory for Hyde. Now he's not one to be self-righteous when it comes to doing drugs, but shooting up heroin has never been on his bucket list and frankly most people back home would never touch anything stronger than marijuana.

Just a few minutes later, Chrissy places the phone on the receiver. "We're meeting up with this guy, Ralph something, tomorrow at four over in Brooklyn" she tells him. Hyde nods his head yes.

"Now that that's settled, want to go have a protest?" he asks her, a cheesy grin on his face.

Chrissy rolls her eyes and gets off the couch. "Fuck off" she says and heads back into their bedroom.

From across the room, Jeff laughs. "Very smooth man" he says. Hyde turns and glares at his roommate and just as his roommate inserts the needle in his arm, he gets up and leaves.


	4. Chapter 4

The next day, after an awkward 30-minute subway ride, Hyde and Chrissy reach a quiet neighborhood in Bushwick. Besides the occasional car driving by, the streets are shockingly deserted for it being the middle of the day. They walk briskly down a few streets in search for Ralph's building. As the building numbers increase, Hyde starts questioning Chrissy about the job they are going to do for this guy.

"He'll explain everything when we meet with him" is all she says.

After a few short minutes, they find the building, which is much nicer than theirs. Chrissy walks over to the intercom and pushes the button for apartment 2B. It takes about a minute for a voice to come from the speaker asking who it is.

"Chrissy" she replies instantly and after a buzzing noise, she pulls the door open. The halls are long and narrow but impeccably clean. The walls seem to be newly painted and the only sound that can be heard is the barking of a dog.

At the end of the hall they find a wide staircase and begin their quick ascend up one flight. Standing in front of apartment 2B, Chrissy takes a deep breath and brings her hand up to ring the doorbell. Hyde watches curiously as her body tenses up and she sticks her hands in the back pockets of her jeans, which she does when she's tense or nervous. He can hear the footsteps from inside getting louder as the person approaches the door.

The door opens slightly, the chain lock still in place. "Zeke's friends?" the deep voice asks from behind the door.

"Chrissy and Hyde" she replies. The door is closed once again and they can hear the sliding of the chain lock and in just a few seconds, a tall muscular man appears before them.

"Come in" he tells them as he opens the door wider to give them more space to step inside.

Once inside the apartment, Hyde can smell the faint aroma of weed. Ralph leads the two of them straight into the small living room. Almost immediately, he and Chrissy share pleasantries and start-up a conversation which Hyde doesn't join right away. Instead, he looks around the apartment, trying to take it all in. The crisp white walls stand out against the dark wooden floor and even darker furniture. A record player is on over by a window, emanating the sound of Bob Dylan's banjo and raw vocals. A television sits on the opposite side of the room, along a wall with the biggest windows Hyde has ever seen. With the exception of some papers on a coffee table, the place is spotless.

"Come on" Chrissy says to Hyde and he follows her and Ralph towards the couch.

Ralph walks over to a single chair and Chrissy claims a spot of the couch leaving Hyde the seat next to her. The three are silent for a moment and Hyde gets the sense they are being sized up. Consciously, he straightens his back and sits as tall as possible. His aviator glasses cover half his face and he tenses up his jaw to give off a more intimidating look. Beside him, Chrissy appears calm as she waits expectantly for Ralph to start speaking.

"I need to know that I can trust you two. Not everyone is cut out for this kind of job so need to know I'm surrounded by the right people, 'cause one wrong move and we're all fucked" Ralph starts up.

Chrissy nods her head and says "you can trust us."

"I hope so. I've heard good things from Zeke and he's like family so if he says you're cool then I believe it. I just need to make sure for myself."

"Of course" she says.

Hyde looks between the two of them, annoyed at the vagueness of the conversation. He still has no idea what job this guy is offering them.

"Hold on, what exactly is it that you do?" Hyde asks and for the first time since entering the room, all eyes are on him.

"I'm an expert at getting what I want" Ralph says to Hyde and this makes Chrissy smile.

"What exactly does that mean?" Hyde asks, still not sure he understands what it is the guy does or how he fits into any of it.

"It means you don't get a place like this with a bullshit salary or playing by the rules. Sometimes you have to throw the rule book out the window and do some crazy shit" Ralph replies. He sits back on the couch and rests his right foot on his left knee. Chrissy also leans back and pulls out a cigarette from her jacket pocket.

"I'm not sure I follow" Hyde answers. He notices Ralph's smile widen and Chrissy nodding her head as the tip of her cigarette lights up.

"Listen kid, you're in New York now which means that to succeed, you need to put morals aside. You don't get to where I am by listening to the man. You have to go out there and do for yourself, even if that means doing things that aren't necessarily legal" Ralph continues. He extends his arm over towards Chrissy and she leans over to hand him the cigarette. As quickly as the stick leaves her fingers, she's reaching into her jacket to get a new one.

"Such as?" Hyde presses on, ignoring the exchange between them.

"I think you're smart enough to put two and two together" Ralph tells him and takes a pull from the cigarette.

"You mean like killing someone" Hyde says which for some reason causes Chrissy to roll her eyes.

"No," Ralph quickly adds, "hell no. I ain't no murderer. I'm talking about taking what you want."

Hyde can sense the tension building within the older man and knows he better stop asking so many questions before a conflict arises. "Got it" he responds, though he's still not sure what this guy is about. He looks over to Chrissy and can tell she isn't happy with him.

"Ignore him" she chimes in, "he's not from around here."

Ralph instantly relaxes and nods his head. "I figured, but enough with the chit-chat. Let's talk numbers. Since I'm devising the plan, I think it's fair that I get sixty percent of the profit. You two can split the remaining forty."

"Fifty-five" Chrissy says firmly. "We're risking as much as you are."

Ralph stares at her for a moment and eventually nods his head. "Fine, fifty-five but _only _ if you do exactly as I say. One wrong move and I'm taking the full sixty."

"Do you really think we can afford to make one wrong move?" Chrissy asks matter-of-factly. She takes one last drag of the cigarette and extinguishes the bud on the glass ashtray sitting on the table.

Finally reaching a point of frustration at being left out of the conversation, Hyde sits forward on his seat. "Can someone explain what the fuck is going on?" he says forcefully.

"Keep up alright?" Ralph responds. Chrissy looks over at Hyde, a menacing look on her face.

"Keep up with what? You haven't said shit and I'm not here to make shit deals with someone I don't fucking know.

"Watch your mouth kid. You're right, you don't know me so be very careful."

"Or what?" Hyde asks, not appreciating the threatening tone he's being addressed in.

"God damn it Hyde will you shut the fuck up?" Chrissy hisses. She pushes herself off the couch and stands a few inches between Hyde, creating a barrier between the two men.

"Not until you tell me what the hell we're doing here" he replies.

"Damn it we're going to rob somebody okay? Now shut the fuck and listen" Chrissy says.

Startled, Hyde sits back a bit on the couch, mouth hanging slightly open. Did he hear that correctly? After a quiet moment in which the other two inhabitants in the room grow more annoyed with Hyde, he gets off the couch and closes the small gap between him and Chrissy. "Are you fucking serious? That's not cool man" he says as he takes his sunglasses off to make eye contact with her. As soon as the words leave his mouth, he realizes he doesn't recognize himself.

Since when the hell is he so against stealing? Hell, that's what he's known for in Point Place, the druggie who partakes in the occasional petty theft. Right now, he's sounding a lot more like Eric than Steve Hyde. Back home, he probably would have jumped at the chance to be a part of this, but now something doesn't sit well with him.

"Jesus, where the fuck did you find this guy?" Ralph says, exasperation more than clear in his voice. "Listen kid, if you're not big enough to do this, then just get the hell on and stop wasting our time because we have shit to figure out. Otherwise, sit there, look pretty and pay attention."

Hyde can feel Chrissy's death glare but he can't get over the fact that this stranger has disrespect him so blatantly. No one in Wisconsin would have dared speak to him like that. Now, this punk is calling him a kid? A scared one at that? Well fuck that because if there is one thing Hyde isn't, it's a scared little kid.

"Just talk man" Hyde replies and walks back over to the couch to have a seat. Chrissy sighs and motions to Ralph to carry on with the conversation. As the older man goes on with his ideas, the thought of painting a pot leave on the water tower is suddenly much more appealing to Hyde.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: I want to thank everyone who has read/reviewed this story so far. I'm having a lot of fun writing it and I hope you're having as much fun reading it. Also, if you guys haven't, you should check out the story Strange Days by Danielle Francoise. It's a really fantastic story and I can't wait to see where it goes.  
**

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Once they leave Ralph's apartment, Hyde trails a few steps behind Chrissy. He tries to process everything that has just happened. He pulls out a cigarette and his lighter from his jacket pocket and brings the stick up between his lips. As the tip lights up and he inhales, a weird calm flows through his body. Sure he just agreed to do something incredibly stupid, but what are the odds that Chrissy will actually make them go through with it? In the week and a half they have until the plan is to be carried out, he can go out and find a job. This will help them pay the bills and put some food on the table. They wouldn't need to go out and risk everything for a few bucks.

Watching her walking ahead however, makes him wonder how she can be so casual about it. Did New York turn people into masochists? Is it really so easy to forget what is right just to get by? When the hell did his morality decide to kick in? After years doing whatever the hell he wanted, taking anything he likes, regardless of the consequences, he suddenly cares about the outcome. Of course, stealing some food or a bit of money from the local nerds is a lot different from breaking into someone's house and taking their belongings.

Hyde suddenly thinks about his friends back in Point Place and how quickly they would have talked him out of this. Eric, especially, would tell him how stupid he is being. He can hear his high-pitched voice calling him a dumbass and threatening to tell Red.

He speeds up to catch up to Chrissy. "What the hell are you thinking?" he starts, "how do we know this guy isn't going to fuck us over with this shit?"

She turns her head slightly to look at him. Her forehead is furrowed and he can tell she is still annoyed at him. "Can you just relax?" she asks him and turns her head forward once again, maintaining her speed.

"How can I relax? Do you know what we're about to do?"

"Jesus, you act like we told you to go kill someone" she replies nonchalantly as if they are discussing the weather or what to have for dinner.

"No, you just want to rob some poor sucker" he says.

"Will you keep it down?" she hisses. She stops walking, pulls him closer to her and looks around to see if anyone heard him.

"I'm not doing this" Hyde says firmly, breaking away from her hold.

"Of course you are. You're in too deep to back out. What the fuck is your problem anyway? You're all revolutionary one minute and self-righteous the next. Get off the pedestal sweetheart, you're either against the man or you're with him" Chrissy tells Hyde and starts walking again, a bit quicker than before.

"I'm for it when it's against a corrupt government, not when it's someone who didn't do a damn thing to me" Hyde exclaims as he tries to catch up to her.

She stops dead in her tracks and turns to face him. "Oh yeah, well guess what?" she begins, her eyes wide and her finger nearly touching his face, "this is the only way we're going to have a place to live or not starve to death. Unless your lazy, high school drop out ass is going to go out and find a high paying job, I suggest you buck up and do it." She turns away from him once more and walks, leaving him behind glaring at her back.

Back at the apartment, the tension continues to hang over their heads. Chrissy heads straight for their bedroom, slamming and locking the door behind her. Fed up with her attitude, Hyde walks over to the door and kicks it a few times, directing curses at her. After a few minutes of this erratic behavior, he gives in and walks over to the couch where he finds Zeke listening to a The Who record.

"Rough day, huh?" Zeke laughs

"She's being a bitch man" Hyde says and leans forward on his spot, reaching for a lighter on the table. He pulls out another cigarette from his pocket and lights it.

"She's a chick, what did you expect?" Zeke replies.

Hyde nods and brings the cigarette to his lips. He pulls and the smoke instantly fills his lungs.

"Are the girls back home the same?" Zeke asks Hyde as he pulls out a cigarette of his own.

"Some of them, the skanky ones. The rest are too uptight or too conceited to give a shit about anyone else" Hyde replies, thinking about all the girls in Point Place. The only one he can tolerate is Donna, and only when she's away from Eric. When they're together, they become love-sick puppies that can't admit they like each other.

The thing he likes about himself is that he never lets a chick affect the way he lives. He's a love them and leave them kind of guy. That being the case, why the hell should he even care about Chrissy? He only followed her to get away from his whore of a mother and the shit storm that is Point Place. New York is his new beginning and hell, if he needs to rob a couple of bastards to make it, he will.

He starts getting up from the couch, but quickly stops and turns to look at Zeke. "Why did you send us to this guy anyway?" he asks.

A smirk appears on Zeke's face and he shrugs his shoulders in a noncommittal fashion. "I know he's a little wild, but he's good at what he does. You need the cash, so why not?"

Hyde stares at his friend (if he can even call him that yet) and simply nods his head. Surely, after the last few weeks bonding over weed and conspiracy theories, Zeke wouldn't screw him over. He's just trying to look out for him and Chrissy.

Hyde takes one last pull from the cigarette, crushes the tip on the ashtray and gets off the couch. "Good luck" he hears Zeke say behind him as he starts walking towards the room.

Once outside the old wooden door, he knocks softly and after a moment, he hears the lock turning. He turns the knob and opens the door. He sees Chrissy walking back over towards the bed. She lays down on the small bed and closes her eyes. He can hear Queen's "_Killer Queen" _coming from the old record player in the corner and she bops her head to the rhythm. He watches as she mouths the words with her full lips. His anger quickly subsides and he walks over towards the bed. He gets over the edge of the bed and in one fluid motion, he is straddling her hips.

Her eyes remain closes and he seizes the opportunity to pounce on her neck. Her moans fill his ears and she thrusts her hips up to meet his. Even during sex they struggle to obtain control. Hyde takes her hands and brings them up to either side of her head. She playfully struggles to release herself from his grip but he presses down on them with slightly more force. He moves his lips from her neck to her lips. A small smile forms on her lips and he brings his head up, curious about what she finds amusing.

"Guess you are a revolutionary after all" she says, finally opening her eyes. Hyde smirks and brings his head back down, ready to prove her right.


	6. Chapter 6

Five days after the meeting in Ralph's apartment, the tension between Hyde and Chrissy has escalated to a new level. In the few moments they manage to spend together, when she's not at a gig or they're too high to converse, they either argue about the "job" they're going to do or have sex. He tries to convince her, to no avail, to opt them out of Ralph's plan and instead give him an opportunity to find legitimate employment. Most of the time she points out that they have just two weeks to find enough money for rent and food. The rest of the time she simply rolls her eyes and storms out of the room.

During the hours she's away, Hyde explores the city streets in search of a job. However, he soon finds out that no one in their right mind will hire a stoner with no previous job experience or high school diploma. The handful of places that will let him work simply would not pay him enough to make due in the short time they have.

With each passing day, their stash of money dwindles down. Even after they make the decision to cut back on drugs and alcohol, they still spend too much on take out food and subway tickets. The few dollars that Chrissy brings in from gigs is nowhere near enough to buy essentials for two people, much less pay for bills. For a brief moment, Hyde considered catching a bus back to Point Place. However, he came across two problems. The first is of course the fact that he does not have the money to pay for a ticket to Wisconsin. The second, and probably most important, is the fact that there is no way in hell Steven Hyde is going to tuck his tail between his legs and crawl back after just a month.

It's not that he gives a damn what people would say, but he simply will not give anyone the satisfaction of seeing him come back. No one leaves for the big city and comes back. No one in their right mind at least, and while most of the time Hyde's mind is in a giant haze, he's still rational enough to know better.

Hell, he can hear his friends now, rubbing it in his face about how wrong he was and how right _they_ were. Forman would especially take joy in the "I told you so" aspect of Hyde's return. He would go on and on about how Hyde belongs in the little town and he should just stick to being a big fish in a little pond. Hyde would probably frog him a few times and then they would go back to the basement and smoke up. They would follow the same routine they've had for years and they would probably be alright.

The problem is that now, after getting a taste of this life, Hyde would not be happy. He's seen too much and experienced too much during his short time in New York to go home now.

That night, Chrissy comes home and makes a beeline towards the telephone. Hyde watches her from his spot on the couch and doesn't even need to ask who she's speaking to. He tries to carry a conversation with Jay and another girl he's brought home, but can't stop shooting glances towards Chrissy to see if she's done speaking. He wants to know what's going on, hopes that Ralph will call the plan off for whatever reason.

After a few more minutes, Chrissy starts walking towards their bedroom and motions for Hyde. He gets off the couch and hurries to meet her in the room.

"Close the door" she tells him as soon as he steps inside. Hyde takes a step back and shuts the door behind him.

"Ralph wants us to meet him at his place tomorrow. Just to go over the details of how we're going to do this and just sort things out" she says as she strips the black shirt off her body.

Hyde follows her hands as they move up over her head, peeling the shirt off her and finally tossing it on the bed. He looks back at her bare upper body and narrows his eyes. He feels his heart speeding up and he can't decide whether it's from her naked body just a few feet away or from the disappointment of still being involved in this.

"What time?" he asks.

"Five. I have practice but I'll be able to get out of it early, probably four. Do you think you can meet me at his place? Do you remember how to get there?" she asks as she unbuttons her black jeans and starts squirming out of them. Hyde nods his head and once again watches her undress. Seeing her there in just her underwear would usually excite him and send him over the edge. Right now, however, she has no effect on him.

"Good. Oh and do me a favor? Don't pull any of that bullshit you did last time okay? Just listen and ask questions if you really need to" Chrissy says as she grabs a pair of sweatpants from a drawer and starts slipping them on. Hyde glares at her and before she turns her back on him to get a t-shirt, he flips her off and walks back out into the living room.

The next day, Hyde waits anxiously for the M-train on Lexington Avenue. As the rush hour crowd fills the platform, he becomes aware of his pulse beating faster than usual. He curses Chrissy several times under his breath and for the first time since getting to New York, he regrets meeting her. Had he just ignored her at the Hub, he wouldn't be standing here about to take part in a crime that might be beyond him. Although, if he had ignored her, he would have missed out on the adventures he's been on the last month. He would probably be sitting in the Forman's basement or the Hub or the water tower. He and his friends would be sitting around trying to come up with plans for the day, but deep down they'd know they wouldn't actually do anything.

Hyde shakes his head and suddenly becomes annoyed with all the thinking he's been doing over this. Just the other day he was having sex with Chrissy and thinking everything was okay. Hell, Zeke said it himself, this guy knows what he's doing. All they need to do is learn the strategy and execute the plan right. Sure Steven Hyde isn't known for following directions, but this time he will have to do just that.

A few minutes later, he sees a light shining through the dark tunnel and takes a few steps back. Once the train comes to a full stop, a sea of people rush off the car in front of him and before the doors close, a smaller crowd of people hop on. Once inside, Hyde manages to push past a few people and find a spot in the center where he can hold on to the metal pole.

He quickly glances around the crowded car. On the far left, a young woman with long, frazzled hair is sitting down with a boom box on her lap blasting Janis Joplin's "Piece of my heart." Some of the people around her are slowly bopping their heads to the song while a man just a few feet from Hyde is singing it as loudly, and off-key, as possible. Hyde smirks and is thankful for the slight distraction.

After about a minute, during the guitar solo, the girl with the boom box raises the volume and a few more people start swaying their heads. The man's voice increases in volume along with the song. Amused, Hyde hopes that these two stay on for the rest of his ride on the train since they are managing to ease his nerves.

As the song continues, Hyde becomes aware of the loud screech that comes towards the end of it and raises his head to look at the man. He notices that a few others have done the same and surely, as Janis says "you know you got it" the man rises from his seat and belts out a long "whoah" which earns him many laughs and a loud applause. Unconsciously, Hyde claps as well.

A short time later, once the entertainment has come to an end, Hyde moves through the car and walks closer to the doors. The train starts moving again, away from Flushing Avenue and towards Myrtle where he will be getting off. Hyde estimates that he will be in Ralph's apartment in ten minutes and then, it will be too late for him to back out.

As the train starts nearing his stop, he overhears two women next to him talking.

"Do you know which album that song is from? The one the young woman was playing earlier in her radio" the older woman asks the one next to her, who Hyde assumes is her daughter or perhaps niece.

"The Janis Joplin song?" the younger girl asks.

"I guess so, yes."

"Cheap Thrills. That's the album" the girl responds and gets back to the magazine she has been reading.

Hyde turns to look for a second and then turns back as the train doors slide open. He pushes along with the people getting off on Myrtle Avenue and once on the platform, walks towards the wide staircase leading up towards the street. Hyde shoves his hands into the pockets of his denim jacket and starts walking the few blocks towards Ralph's place.

**Author's Note: Okay, so admittedly not much is going on in this chapter and I mostly wrote it to get inside Hyde's mind a little more. Also, I couldn't resist adding the great train performance (which happens oh so often in New York). I promise the next chapter will have more things going on about the plan and it'll move faster from then on. **

**Also, I want to thank everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Unfortunately I got really busy with job applications and figuring things out for grad school and couldn't reply back to them. I do appreciate you guys taking the time to comment and I'm very glad you seem to be enjoying the story as much as I'm enjoying writing it. Til next time!**

**Thanks for reading!**


	7. Chapter 7

The few blocks from the subway station to Ralph's building take much longer than Hyde remembers. Perhaps it's because he is dreading reaching his destination. Each step brings him closer to the biggest risk he's ever taken in his short life. It brings him closer to putting it all on the line, and for what? An undisclosed amount of money that may or may not be enough to cover expenses for two people.

Now in front of Ralph's place, Hyde takes a deep breath and hesitantly walks towards the intercom. It takes him a moment to remember the apartment number. Two...he squints his eyes and end up pressing two buttons, 2B and 2F. Just a few seconds later, he hears a familiar voice coming from the metal box.

"Who is it?" Ralph asks, his raspy voice booming from two stories up. This guy can easily intimidate someone with just his voice. Luckily for Hyde, he's spent enough time with Red Forman to know what intimidating truly is.

"Hyde, what's the apartment?"

"2B kid, come up" Ralph replies and before Hyde can protest being called a kid a buzzing noise comes and Hyde takes a step forward to pull the door.

As he walks into the building, he realizes that the hallway no longer looks as clean as it did the first time he saw it. The paint on the wall doesn't look as fresh and more sounds emanate from all directions. Hyde can hear a lady inside one of the apartments yelling at someone about the television. In another direction, loud music blares from bad speakers, the static of the radio more prevalent than the actual lyrics. While making his way towards the stairs, Hyde hears the familiar barking of a dog and for whatever reason he feels more at ease.

Finally reaching the second floor, Hyde walks to the door marked 2B and knocks heavily against its bright red paint. Hearing the shuffling steps within, Hyde reaches up to readjust his sunglasses and relaxes his shoulders. He is not about to let Ralph see him sweat. The guy already thinks Hyde's inadequate for the job, well he better be ready to be proved wrong.

A few seconds later Hyde hears the locks turning and the door swings open. Chrissy unexpectedly opens the door, a grin taking up half her face. "Hey stud" she greets him and Hyde can immediately tell she is high.

She steps aside as Hyde raises an eyebrow in response. "Come in" she tells him and he takes a step into the apartment. Chrissy quickly closes the door behind her and before Hyde can say anything, she turns to him and brings his lips to hers. In a swift, forceful motion, Hyde brings his hand up to her hair and tugs on it hard enough to entice her. This is when he likes her the most, when she is high and horny. She doesn't care where she is or who is around her, if she craves him she will take him and make satisfy her.

Hyde pushes her against the wall and lets his free hand roam her body. Her moans urge him on and he brings his lips down to her neck and lower to the area just above her breast. As she writhes under his touch, she runs her hands through his curly mane, scratching his scalp with her sharp nails.

It isn't until he hears someone clearing their throat a few feet away does Hyde stop. He brings his head up and glances towards his right where Ralph is standing. Ralph, with his crisp black t-shirt and shiny boots. His facial hair perfectly trimmed and his eyes displaying his amusement at the scene before him.

"Not that I don't enjoy the show," he says as he folds his arms across his chest, "but I'm a busy guy and we have a lot to do." Ralph turns around leaving the two lovers to fix themselves before joining him in the living room to go over the plan.

Chrissy, embarrassed, gently pushes Hyde off her and smooths down her top. Hyde watches as she carefully brushes her hair with her fingers and walks sensually towards the living room. If he were any other guy, he would probably be jealous of how obvious she is being, but frankly he doesn't care. Sure he likes Chrissy, but not nearly enough to feel envious whenever someone else catches her eye. Hell, plenty of girls have gotten his attention in the short time he's been in New York.

He follows her, and once they enter the living room he realizes it's not as clean as he expected it to be. Last time he had been here, the place was so immaculate that he felt afraid to touch anything. Now, however, there are papers strewn everywhere, several cups are on the coffee table and Ralph's records cover nearly the entire couch. Chrissy steps towards the couch first and moves a few albums out of the way to make room for her and Hyde. Hyde carefully joins her, trying not to sit or move any of the records. If anyone appreciates these things it's him, and seeing the large collection Ralph has accumulated, Hyde can tell he does too.

"Okay, I spoke to this guy who's in on the plan and he confirmed that the people we'll be...you know, will not be home Friday between seven and 9:30. They have some fancy ass event or whatever to go to so we'll have enough time to get in, take whatever we need and get out" Ralph informs them as soon as they sit down.

Hyde is startled by the urgency in which he delivers the information and can't figure out how to process it. "This Friday?" he asks first.

"Yes" Ralph answers firmly.

Friday. Just three days away. Hyde's heart starts to beat quickly. They're supposed to have at least two weeks. That had been the plan from the beginning. They are supposed to have time to prepare and have a plan. Now they only have three days to pull this off? That's bullshit.

"A bit sudden isn't it?" Hyde asks and Chrissy shoots him a threatening glare, warning him not to start again. Hyde ignores her and stares intently at Ralph, hoping to appeal to his rational side.

"No, it's perfect. We get this over with and each have what we need" Ralph answers.

_Some rational side _Hyde thinks.

"So I assume you have a plan" Chrissy says before Hyde can make another comment.

"Of course" he quickly responds and pulls out a roll of paper. He unfolds it and Hyde can see the sketch of a floor plan.

"This guy works in the house and he drew this up for us. Let's go over it and come up with a strategy and plan for a worst case scenario" Ralph continues.

"Hold on, before we go over this, who the hell is this guy that is suddenly part of the plan? Why haven't we heard about him?" Hyde asks. For once, Chrissy doesn't react negatively towards his questions but rather glances over to Ralph.

"Don't worry about who he is, but know this, he's trustworthy. I've worked with him before and he's got just as much to lose as we do."

"So I'm assuming he's getting part of the cut" Chrissy asks.

"He is, but don't worry about him. I agreed that you would get forty-five percent of what we take and I'm a man of my word. I'll handle his share" Ralph says.

Chrissy nods, satisfied with the answer and sits forward on the couch to get a better look at the floor plan which Ralph has laid out on the table.

Hyde remains silent. So many questions are running through his head but he can't bring himself to ask any of them. First, he doesn't want to reaffirm Ralph's belief that he's not capable of pulling this through, and then of course he still can't wrap his head around everything that is going on.

He watches a Chrissy and Ralph go through the floor plan and discuss escape plans in case something goes wrong. The more they talk about profits and how they're going to pull this off, the more Hyde's stomach turns. They are really about to do this.

What if they get caught? Jail is very different than jail and the petty Wisconsin criminals are nothing compared to those in New York. As the thoughts rush faster and faster, Hyde pulls out a bag from his pocket and a brown paper. Carefully, he prepares the joint. As he takes a drag, he can barely hear what they are talking about. One puff...Two puffs...Three.

"Easy there kid, you need a clear mind" Ralph shoots at him bemused.

Chrissy gives him yet another threatening stare and Hyde just takes another pull as his personal "fuck you" to her. He takes a moment to look at the floor plan. If something goes wrong Friday, he needs to know where to run to. He sees that there are two doors, one front and one in the back, on the first floor and a balcony in one of the rooms on the second floor. He goes over the sketch a few times, filing it into his memory...his hazy memory.

Thirty minutes later, his high is starting to wear off. Hyde lazily sits back on the couch and watches as Chrissy and Ralph laugh at some joke that he apparently missed. It disturbs him how calm they are, almost as if they have done this before. Well, Ralph probably has and for all he knows so has Chrissy. Hell, come to think of it, he doesn't know much about her. Besides her being rebellious and a good lay, there is nothing personal about her he knows.

A few more minutes pass and very little is being discussed about the plan. Instead, Chrissy is being more flirtatious than ever. She laughs at all of Ralph's stupid jokes and rests her hand on his knees. Hyde rolls his eyes behind his dark sunglasses, but he isn't surprised by her behavior, she did pick him up at a burger joint in a shit hole town.

While watching the interaction before him, he starts thinking about what his friends back home must be doing at that moment. They're probably sitting around in the basement, talking about something that happened in school or hearing the latest gossip from loud mouthed Jackie. It didn't sound all that bad now, hundreds of miles away.

**Author's Note: **First, I want to apologize for taking a while to update, I fell behind on writing and had a really busy week. Secondly, thank you so much for everyone who has reviewed the story. I apologize for not always replying but I do read them all and appreciate them. Last but not least, the plan is being carried out in the next chapter so tune in for that. I have a twist that will make this story much more interesting.


	8. Chapter 8

That Friday, a few minutes before five in the afternoon, Hyde and Chrissy arrive at a small, dingy apartment on Kingbridge Road in the Bronx where Ralph asked them to meet him to go over last-minute details before they go carry out the plan. Hyde and Chrissy stand by the door as Ralph introduces them to a friend of his who will help them out.

"Lou here is caught up with everything. He's going to be our getaway driver. He'll drop us off and when the deed is done we're gonna come back here to his place and talk numbers" Ralph tells them. Hyde eyes the guy curiously. His long black hair rests just above his shoulder and poorly conceals a tattoo. His eyes are almost as dark as his hair and are easily the blankest ones Hyde has ever seen. There is no emotion behind them. This Lou guy has clearly reached a level of zen that Hyde has yet to discover. Either that, or he's a sociopath.

For the next hour, all four go over the plan. Ralph pulls out the floor plans once more and the three of them look over it, making sure to remember where all the doors are. "We'll meet up here at eight and go out the back door here" Ralph tells them pointing towards the paper showing them the exit. "Lou's going to be just a block down, ready to go as soon as we get out. If he sees anything weird, he'll honk twice and we get the hell out of there."

At a quarter to seven, they leave Lou's apartment and make their way down the street where his beat up 1970s Ford is parked. Lou unlocks the door and quickly gets behind the wheel. Ralph pulls open the front passenger door and Chrissy takes the seat directly behind him. Hyde goes around back and gets into the seat behind Lou. Lou turns the key and as the ignition turns out, Hyde realizes that the car might not be the best option for a getaway car. The muffler, clearly in need of some work, is much too loud. He thinks for a moment about bringing this up to the others, but decides against it once Lou pulls out of the space and the speedometer hits fifty almost immediately.

Just ten short minutes later, all four are sitting across a house which Ralph has identified as "_the _house." Hyde looks out the window of the car towards the house he's about to enter. He can see why Ralph would choose this house; the outside screams wealth. The front lawn is perfectly trimmed, the grass a dull shade of green despite it being winter. Two large pillars stands next to the dark wooden door and from where he is, Hyde can count at lease five rooms. This is the perfect family home, exactly what he would have loved to grow up in.

He looks to his left and sees Chrissy staring at the house in awe, and he is glad he's not the only person so impressed by it. Dare he say, he's a bit intimidated by it. A house like that must belong to someone of power, someone who has the means to provide security for his family. Surely it won't be so easy to get into. Suddenly, Hyde realizes that if this was Point Place, he would be getting ready to rob the Burkharts. There was no easier target than Jackie's family. The Burkhart's had one of the biggest homes in Point Place and were not ashamed to brad about it.

He wouldn't actually be opposed to breaking into Jackie's house. Hell, he wouldn't think twice about it. They have so much crap that they probably wouldn't notice if anything were to go missing. Besides, one of the maids would let him in because he's "Ms. Burkhart's friend" and make it that much easier for him. He thinks about how he would go about entering the house and what he could take. No, it wouldn't be hard at all.

Hyde smirks and shakes his head. How ridiculous it is to feel more comfortable stealing from a "friend" than from someone he doesn't owe a thing to. Then again, the cold metal pressing against his leg makes the entire situation more serious.

After almost half hour, the house's porch light comes on and a middle age couple step outside. Both are elegantly dressed, the man with a dark suit and shiny leather shoes, the woman's hair is tidy and her long black dress serves as mere background for the sparkling diamonds she's wearing. Hyde watches as the man locks the door behind him and catches up to his wife down the driveway. They look so happy, so blissfully oblivious to how the night will end.

The car starts to move and Hyde glances up towards Ralph's friend. "We can't let them spot us" he says and continues driving for about a minute. He then takes a route that leads them back to the house. He finds a spot a couple of yards away from the house and parks.

"You have to go in through the back. Can't risk one of the neighbors see the light turning back on" he says as he turns off the ignition and turns to look back to Hyde and Chrissy. She nods her head in agreement while Hyde just stares at the guy, waiting to see if there's anything else they should do.

"You're sure there's no one else in the house?" Ralph asks the guy who quickly shakes his head.

"They have two kids but they're at their grandparents for the weekend. There's no one else in there" he replies glancing to Ralph.

"How do you know so much about these people anyway?" Hyde asks.

The guy turns once again and simply glares at him. Immediately, Hyde makes a mental note to stop asking these people questions.

"Okay, so I got us these masks to wear in case these assholes got cameras and shit" Ralph says looking only at Chrissy. He tosses them black ski masks and two pair of gloves. Hyde pulls the gloves out and wonders why the hell he hadn't thought to bring a pair. He truly hadn't thought this through very well. Of course they would need gloves.

"Any other questions before we do this Einstein?" Ralph asks Hyde and smirks when Hyde flips him off. "Alright, let's go then" he continues and exits the car first.

"Good luck" the driver says before Chrissy and Hyde get out. The car is soon out of sight, waiting at a designated spot for when they're done.

Hyde looks towards Ralph who is already putting on the mask and gloves. Hyde quickly does the same and once his face and hands are covered, he looks over at Chrissy who is standing right beside him. Her mask is half covering her face. She is biting the inside of her lip and her hands are inside the back pockets of her jeans. It's good to know that she's as nervous as he is, but neither is going to let the other know. They're too good at putting up a strong front. That's why they both say they're ready when Ralph asks them.

"Follow me" Ralph says and leads them towards the back door.

Inside, Ralph pulls out a few flashlights from the bag he's carrying and hands one to each of them. "Don't turn any lights on" he states firmly and flips his on. Hyde turns his flashlight on and starts pointing it around the kitchen.

Even with dim lighting, the interior proves to be just as impressive as the exterior. The dark wooden floor is polished and the appliances look brand new. There are no weird patterns on the wall or colors named after food. Everything is clean, crisp. Almost untouchable. A large dining table is right in the middle of the room, covered with a white tablecloth and multiple settings laid out for decoration. Suddenly, the decadence of the place makes Hyde less anxious. These people clearly had the means to replace whatever they took. He would just take a few things he was sure they wouldn't miss too much and call it a day. They would replace the items and he could pay his rent. It's not a completely lose-lose situation.

"Okay, so let's not waste time taking stupid shit. Find the valuables and pocket them" Ralph says as he steps up towards them. "Jewelry, money, drugs if you find any. Anything that we can get a lot of money for, take it."

"We should check the rooms first" Chrissy says, her nerves clearly not such a problem anymore.

"Good idea. Go check the rooms upstairs," Ralph says talking to Chrissy. "I want you to stay down here with me, I want to try and crack open the safe in the room down here" he continues, pointing to Hyde.

Skeptical, Hyde wonders how the hell he would know about a safe and where it is, but decides to not question it. Obviously this guy is no amateur and knows what he's doing. Hyde simply nods his head and within seconds is following behind Ralph towards an office room at the far end of the first floor.

Ralph turns the golden knob and leads Hyde in. He immediately walks towards the desk in the back of the room and crouches down beneath it. Hyde slowly follows him and hears a drawer opening.

"Too easy" he hears Ralph exclaim. Hyde gets to where Ralph is and smirks when he sees the bigger guy pulling a safe out of the drawer.

"Point the flashlight over here so I can open this shit" Ralph commands and before Hyde focuses the light on the safe, Ralph extends his arm and hands Hyde a gun.

"What the fuck is this?" Hyde asks startled at the metal weapon now resting on the palm of his hand.

"Don't tell me you've never seen one of these before" Ralph replies, turning away from Hyde and looking at the safe.

"Why do you have it?"

"I like to be ready for anything" Ralph answers and reaches over to the buttons in front of the safe.

Hyde watches nervously as Ralph rotates the safe trying to open it. Several minutes pass with no luck. Getting increasingly frustrated with each failed attempt, Ralph stands up and stretches. "Wanna give it a shot?" he tells Hyde who simply nods his head and squats down to try. He pulls off the mask to see better and places the gun on the floor. Once Ralph points his flashlight towards the safe, Hyde reaches over to turn the numbers. After another four minutes, he finally gives up

"Let's just take this shit and open it later" Hyde suggests, getting off the floor and grabbing the gun in the process.

"Whatever" Ralph replies and leans down to grab hold of the safe. "Let's go find some other shit to take" he says as he starts walking towards the door.

For a while, all three of them look around the house for any valuables they can take with them. Chrissy walks after Ralph and Hyde, raving about the amazing jewelry she found in the master bedroom. She's so enthralled in the story that not once does she mention the gun in Hyde's hand. "I can't believe how much stuff she has" she repeats over and over, which just reaffirms Hyde's belief that these people won't miss any of the things they take. He walks after Hyde to the living room where they find small silver trinkets. Hyde finds a gold pocket watch on one of the end tables and a thin necklace. He stuffs the gun in his pocket and grabs holds the necklace to look at it better. The tiny heart shines as he points his flashlight on it and when he turns it around, he sees that it is engraved: _Sleep Tight Little One. _Hyde's heart sinks. This must be their daughter's necklace. He's taking a child's belongings.

A short distance away, Ralph is sitting on the couch trying to open the safe once more. Hyde can hear him cursing under his breath as he fails several more times to put in the right combination. Suddenly, a bright light illuminates the room. Hyde's head quickly turns towards the direction of the light. His eyes squint as they try to adjust to the brightness. Ralph shoots off the couch. "What the fuck did I say about turning the lights-" he hisses aggressively and his voice drops when he realizes that both Hyde and Chrissy are nowhere near the light switch.

"What the hell is going on?" they hear a fourth voice and as quickly as the question is asked, they see the owner of the house. He's standing, alone, his hands dropping slowly and his eyes widening as he realizes what's happening. His mouth forms an 'O' and Hyde can see the tension taking over his body.

"Mother of God" the man says, his voice wavering. Hyde can't take his eyes off the poor guy who is not only caught off guard but also visibly outnumbered. Hyde suddenly becomes aware of his own hands shaking and to steady them, he reaches into his pocket and grips Ralph's gun tighter and as if out of habit, he pulls it out, raises it and points it towards the man.

"No, please don't. Take whatever you want I won't stop you" the guy quickly says, his face growing pale at the sight of the gun.

"Shoot!" he hears Chrissy yelling from a few feet away.

"Fucking shoot him god damn it" Ralph says from not too far away.

"No don't shoot, I won't call the cops. This didn't happen, please just don't shoot" the man says loudly, his hands raised above his head and his eyes wide open. All the commands make Hyde's head spin and all he can do is stand still and keep aiming the gun at the guy.

"Like hell he won't. He saw your face man, he'll call the fucking pigs and you'll get locked up. Just shoot him and let's get the hell out of here" Ralph urges on, his voice increasing in volume and Hyde can hear his feet shuffling closer towards him.

Damn it, he didn't even realize his face is visible. There's no way this man isn't going to call the police after they leave. As soon as they run off, he'll make that one call and describe him to the cops. He's had enough time to memorize every detail of Hyde's face. He couldn't be trusted. But what's the alternative? Hyde can't imagine shooting this guy. He had done nothing wrong besides come back home early. No, Hyde can't do it.

"Please, I have a family" the guy says as if he senses Hyde's internal battle.

Hyde subtly nods his head and slowly starts lowering his gun.

"What the fuck are you doing? Keep it up" he hears from just behind him. Anger brews within Hyde and he turns his head to look at Ralph and tell him off when suddenly he hears moving and from the corner of his eye he can see the man making a dash towards the door. Hyde quickly turns back and lifts the gun.

"Hyde" Chrissy yells.

"God damn it."

"Go, shoot him."

A loud popping noise overwhelms the room and is followed by a deafening silence. Hyde stands still, the gun still raised and he can't look away from the still-laying body and the large pool of blood growing beneath it.


	9. Chapter 9

A deafening silence fills the room as the thick, red liquid slowly fills the perimeter of the body. Hyde concentrates hard on the body looking for any movement that may indicate a pulse. For a second, he thinks he sees a few fingers twitching but he could be wrong. He lowers the gun to his side and for the first time in what feels like the longest moment of his life, he glances back at Chrissy and Ralph.

Chrissy's face is now exposed and her hands cover her mouth. Her eyes are wide open and darker than usual. Hyde can't remember if her skin has always been as pale or her body so still. The woman who always seems to have something to say is suddenly lacking words. Under normal circumstances, he would find her lovely in this state. However, he can't help but acknowledge the severity of the situation just from looking at her.

Ralph stands nearby with his hands crossed in front of his chest. He squints his eyes and examines the scene before him. "I have to say," he starts turning to look at Hyde, "I didn't think you had it in you kid."

Hyde furrows his forehead and looks at body once more. "We should leave" he says.

"Like hell we are. We have to make sure he's dead" Ralph responds as he unfolds his arms and reaches up to take off his mask.

"Will you look at him? He's not moving. He's dead man" Hyde replies. He turns back to look at Ralph.

"He could be acting, think of that Einstein? Go check on him" Ralph continues, this time turning to tell Chrissy. She shakes her head furiously from side to side, never bothering to make eye contact with him.

"Damn it, go check" Ralph hisses and he starts moving closer towards her. Hyde instantly moves from his spot and stands in front of Chrissy to shield her from him. The interaction hits too close to home for him, as he remembers the countless times he had to block Edna from Bud when he came home drunk and they got into an argument. He would curse at her and she would do the same, often blaming him for her unhappiness or for ruining her life. This would go on for hours sometimes until finally, Bud got really mad and almost beats her. Hyde can't remember how many times he's taken the blows for his mother.

"Leave her alone man, she's clearly freaked out" he tells Ralph who is too close for Hyde's comfort.

"Listen kid, if you haven't realized, things are a little more serious now. This isn't some bullshit robbery where you took a few bucks and got out. You just shot the fucker which means there can't be room for errors. One wrong move and we're all fucked. If he's not dead, he'll go to the goddamn pigs and tell them what you look like. And do you know what will happen _when _the catch you? They'll throw you country ass in a cell and let you rot. So if you want to take that chance, let's go. Otherwise, go make sure he's good and dead."

Hyde takes a moment to ponder this point and he reluctantly starts making his way towards the body. Careful not to step on the blood, he leans down and presses his fingers against the man's neck to feel for a pulse. Silently, he prays to feel the throbbing veins under his glove, but after a moment of nothing, he rises and shakes his head.

The reality of killing someone finally sets in. He stares at the body and then down at the gun in his hand. He suddenly feels detached from his own body. He would be lying if he said he has never thought about shooting someone. In fact, it has always been a recurring thought when he was around Bud, Edna and their anonymous flavors of the day. Whenever he had to hide out in his bedroom, Hyde would lay back on his mattress and think of the ways he would get rid of his parents. Surely he would torture them and make the pay for his crappy childhood. His thought process went so far that he even managed to build a defense for his actions.

"They were drunk your honor," he would say, "and almost attacked me. It was an act of self-defense." None of it would actually be untrue. His parents were always drink and he would easily get away with a self-defense claim since everyone in Point Place knew the dynamics of the Hyde family. The jury would sympathize with the innocent boy who just grew up in a bad home, and the judge would have to set him free. It would all be that simple.

However, standing by the body of someone he doesn't know is different. This poor bastards never did a thing to him. He isn't like his parents who deserve his wrath. He's probably a good husband and a loving father who played football with his son and sat through pretend tea parties with his little girl. In a matter of seconds, Hyde constructs a fairy tale like for his victim which only makes him feel like a bigger piece of shit.

"Let's get the fuck out of here" Ralph says, breaking Hyde's trance. Hyde turns to look at Ralph and notices Chrissy, finally in control of her body. Ralph has started walking towards the safe to pick it back up. Seeing Ralph be so calm and nonchalant about the situation makes Hyde hate the guy even more if that's possible. Before joining them at the other end of the room, Hyde bends back down and places the gun down in the man's hand. Maybe he can make it look like a suicide. Perhaps people will believe that the guy just grew tired of living and shot himself. Chances of that are slim, but Hyde just needs something that will make him feel better and do away with any reminder of tonight.

When he gets back up, he catches Ralph's threatening look and Hyde shoots one right back at him. There is no way in hell he's taking the gun with him and if Ralph is so adamant in taking it, he can go get it himself. Surprisingly, Ralph chooses not to say anything and instead starts walking across the room towards the living room. Hyde slowly makes his way after them. He watches carefully as Chrissy keeps a distance from Ralph and continuously looks back at the body.

At that moment, she appears more human to him. She's finally expressing some type of emotion towards the situation, even if it is a little too late. Hyde lets out a sigh of relief and can't wait to walk out of this house and get back to his life. He keeps his eyes down on the floor, not wanting to take in any more of the house. The less he sees, the less he has to remember.

"Oh shit" he hears Ralph say and Hyde looks up. Through the living room windows, he sees the bright red and blue flashing lights.

"This is the police. We have the place surrounded, come out with your hands up."

Chrissy quickly whips her head around to look at Hyde. As his shoulders drop, he makes eye contact with her and sees his own fears reflected in her eyes.

**Author's Note: Admittedly, I got a bit stuck on this chapter which is why it took longer than usual to update. I expected the chapter to be a bit longer, but alas this is what came out. I have already started chapter 10 which should be up some time this weekend. Until then. Thanks for reading. **


	10. Chapter 10

**Flashback:**

_Hyde walks out of the Forman's house, not sure what to make of their conversation. "...An even lower, more pathetic nothing." Red's words resonate in his head as he walks down the sidewalk. As much as he appreciates the Forman's, they don't get to have a say on his decision to go to New York. If his own mother isn't too concerned about his departure and future whereabouts, why should Kitty and Red be? He understands that they are only looking out for their son's best friend, but Hyde isn't like Eric. In fact, he's the complete opposite. Unlike his friend, Hyde has spent the majority of his life on his own. While his parents were too wasted or simply not there, he has always managed to care for himself. Going off to the big city would only provide him with more opportunities to get somewhere in life. _

_Going to New York is something he needs to do. Who cares if his résumé isn't impressive? He's a street savvy kid who can find his own way. If he gets lucky enough, he'll find someone who will take a chance on him and help him out. He will go out and prove everyone wrong. He will show them all that he has potential and can amount to more than even he expects from himself. _

_No, he isn't going to sit around in Point Place anymore and paint pot leaves on the water tower or get high or secretly screw the cheerleading squad. He is going to go with the coolest chick he's met to the East coast and start his life over._

**End of Flashback.**

"Shit, shit, shit" Hyde hears Chrissy saying and his mind begins reeling, trying to figure out the next step.

"Shut up" Ralph says to Chrissy, his voice more forceful and bitter than ever before. He takes a few steps back and closes the gap that separates him from her. Hyde sees her shoulders rise as Ralph levels his eyes to hers. "You better keep your cool, or else" he threatens before quickly straighten up again.

"What are we going to do man? There has to be a way out of here without getting caught" Hyde asks. He thinks about the floor plan and can't seem to remember any other exits.

"Did you miss the part where they have the place surrounded? There's no way out of here...unless" Ralph says but he suddenly starts. Hyde notices him looking over Chrissy's shoulders towards the direction of the body, a curious expression on his face. Hyde turns to follow his gaze and can't seem to understand where he is going with this. "Unless what?" he finally answers.

Ralph remains silent and turns his head to look back out the window where a police officer repeats orders for them to exit the residence.

"Ralph, what the hell are we going to do?" Chrissy asks, her exasperation clear in her voice. She can no longer keep her nerves in control and her voice cracks. Hyde knows that pretty soon she will lose all sense of control and be unable to think clearly.

"We need to act fast. They'll probably bust in here soon and lock us up" Ralph says.

"Exactly, so what do you suggest we do?" Hyde asks.

Ralph turns to make eye contact with Hyde and an unsettling smirk grows on his face. Before they can react, Ralph walks past Chrissy and Hyde and walks back towards the room with the body. Chrissy looks after him and shoots a curious glance towards Hyde.

"Listen man, can you tell us what the fuck the plan is? In case you haven't noticed, there's a bunch of cops out there and I'm sure they're more than willing to blow our fucking brains out if we don't coöperate" Hyde calls after Ralph. When he doesn't get a response, he starts walking after Ralph. As he approaches the room with the body, he comes to a full stop. Just a few feet from him, Ralph is standing over the body, holding the gun against his temple.

"Well we won't let them. We'll just blow them ourselves" he replies, the wicked grin wider than before.

"Dude...what the fuck are you doing?" Hyde asks, his voice barely audible.

Chrissy is now standing behind Hyde and a loud gasp escapes her lips.

"We choose our own fate, not them" Ralph says, his voice cold and distant.

"Just put it down. We can find a way out of here" Hyde says. From the corner of his eye he can see Chrissy beginning to take a step forward and he quickly reaches out his arm to stop her. Hyde shakes his head subtly, and she stops.

"Don't bother trying to stop me sweetheart" Ralph says. He shifts the gun a bit and winks at her. "There's really no point."

"Listen man, we can figure this shit out" Hyde urges on. He knows that without Ralph, they don't have much of a chance to get out without getting caught. He's the only one who knows where Lou is parked, so even if they manage to escape the police, they wouldn't get very far on foot.

Ralph throws his head back and laughs. He lowers his hands and the gun rests at his side. "I always had a feeling about you boy. You're too optimistic to make it out here, should have just stayed home."

"Ralph, please just put the gun down. We just have to think for a second and we will get out of here without getting caught" Chrissy jumps in, hoping that she can reason with Ralph.

"Rebellion, darling, isn't for the faint of heart" Ralph says and brings his hand back up, the gun resting once more at the center of his temple. "Fight on" he continues, and as quickly as the words leave his mouth, a deafening boom fills the room. Chrissy screams loudly and runs past Hyde towards Ralph's body.

Hyde watches in horror as she crouches down and cradles his head. His blood seeps out rapidly and soaks the sleeves of her dark t-shirt. Her sobs grow louder with each passing second as she rocks backwards and forward. "Damn it" Hyde whispers.

At that moment, everything seems to be lost. There is no way he can depend on Chrissy to think reasonably now, and he can't think of a way out. He curses himself for agreeing to do this. Now that things were at their worse, he thinks about how much easier it would have been to just opt out of it.

"Chrissy we need to go" Hyde says as he starts walking over to her.

"No" she says, "I can't." She reaches up to her face and tries to wipe the tears away. Unfortunately, the blood on her hands smear on her cheeks which makes her eyes tear up more.

"He's dead, we can't just stay here we need to find another way out of here" Hyde continues.

She simply shakes her head from side to side and continues cradling Ralph's still body. A few seconds pass and Hyde gets more irritated.

"Damn it, we're wasting time Chrissy. Let's go" he says.

"This is the police, we have you surrounded" the voice comes once more which further annoys Hyde. He tries to estimate how much time has passed between the first command and this one. Surely cops won't be patient for much longer. If there is any chance of them getting out, they need to act now.

"If you want to stay here with two bodies, fine but I'm finding a way out" Hyde tells Chrissy, hoping this convinces her to follow him.

She slowly turns her head to look at him and Hyde can't help but feel sorry for her. The flowing tears are mixing with Ralph's blood and her eyes are pink and a bit swollen. Her nose is already runny and he can't help but feel foolish to underestimate the flirtation between her and Ralph. He wonders whether the two of them saw each other more often than they let on. Surely it would have been easy for her to meet with him while she was at one of her "gigs."

Hyde shakes his head slowly, not wanting to think about anything but an escape plan. He tries to appear sympathetic. "Please, lets just go."

A faint smile forms on her thin lips. "I'm sorry I made you do this" she says. She brings herself to make eye contact with him and Hyde nods.

"It's alright, I'm just as responsible. Let's just get the hell out of here" he says once more.

She nods her head slightly and slowly sets Ralph's head down on the floor. Hyde lets out a sigh of relief and turns around as the policeman's voice echoes across the room. "If you do not surrender yourselves, we will be forced to come in" he says and Hyde can't make out the rest.

"Hyde" Chrissy says.

"Yeah?" Hyde asks without turning around.

"Fight on" she says which makes Hyde spin around at once. He finds her in the same position Ralph was in just before he pulled the trigger.

"Chrissy" he says and starts walking rapidly towards her, but before he can reach her, the gun goes off and her body hits the floor with a loud thud.

His eyes widen and his mind stops. Her body is still and her dark eyes are open, staring blankly at the ceiling. The thick, red blood is matting her hair and the rhythmic rising and falling motion he's always liked about her chest is no longer there. His surroundings become a blur and he feels his heart beating at a pace faster than he's ever thought possible.

A few minutes pass in which he feels numb and can't make his body move. All he can do is stand still and stare at the bloodshed before him. For weeks, he's thought about this night and all the things that could go wrong. Even his worst predictions don't compare to this.

He takes a deep breath and slowly moves his leg towards Chrissy's body. He carefully crouches down and brings his hand to her face. He gently caresses her cheek and closes her eyes.

Once again, Red Forman's voice plays in his mind. This definitely classifies as a bigger nothing than he was in Point Place. At this moment, he would rather be a poor burnout than the murderer he now is. He slowly stands up and runs a hand through his curly mane.

Slowly, he turns around and walks across the room and towards the front of the house. The closer he gets to the door, the brighter the car lights get and the louder the speakers sound. As he reaches the door, he pauses and takes one last look around. This room shows no evidence of the tragedy that occurred just a few yards away. If he has to have one image of this night in his mind, he wants to remember the immaculate room in which a perfect family probably shared many happy memories. He wants to think about a place he could have been a part of in another life.

Hyde turns back towards the door and places his hand on the doorknob. He hesitates for a moment and then slowly turns the knob and opens the door. As the red and blue lights flash on him, he brings his hands behind his head and drops to his knees. Within seconds, two policemen are standing beside him as a third one grabs hold of his wrists and cuffs them.

As the cops bring his back into his feet, Hyde looks around and sees a few people standing out in their yards watching the scene. Some people cover their mouths with their hands in shock and others shake their heads or wipe tears away. He tries to avoid their eyes and as he's about to look down to the ground, he hears an ignition turning on, followed by the loud sound of a busted muffler. Hyde watches as the Ford takes off into the distance, taking with it his freedom.

**Author's Note: I was supposed to update this past weekend but had trouble finishing this chapter. I couldn't decide what to do with Chrissy and for whatever reason, this is what I ended up with. I have to admit, this is not what I originally had planned for her. I did know that Hyde would end up here and decided it would be confusing going back and forth between them (since I didn't want to completely drop her from the story if she survived). Hopefully you guys like my decision and stay tuned for the next chapter. **


	11. Chapter 11

The eerie silence in the cold, bare room make him nervous. It's been nearly fifteen minutes since the two police officers stepped out leaving him to his thoughts. Sitting in the uncomfortable wooden chair, he can't help but replay everything that happened tonight. The puddle of blood that spilled on the floor from the three bodies haunt him. Standing there, staring at their dead eyes staring at the ceiling is an image he will most likely never forget. Then, of course, he thinks about Chrissy and watching her pull the trigger and collapse.

In just a short time, their relationship took a turn for the worse. The girl he met at the hub a few months ago was one he was sure would change his life. When he agreed to take of to New York with her, he saw endless possibilities and couldn't wait to embark of a new adventure. Never would he have imagined going down this road. His teenage mind only pictured the two of them as part of the music scene. She would strike it big with her punk band and he would become someone important eventually. Even after reality set in and he saw how limited his options were, he was still a bit optimistic.

Now, Chrissy is dead and he's in a police station about to get the book thrown at him. Ever since the cops left, he's been thinking of ways he can get out of looking guilty. For someone who has worked hard to build a reputation as a badass, he is terrified of going to prison. He knows that nothing good can possibly come out of this situation, and having been found at a house with three bodies inside means that nothing he says will make him look innocent.

He tries desperately for several more minutes to come up with something when the two officers walk back in.

Hyde looks on as they fold their arms across their chest in perfect sync and take several steps towards him. Hyde sits up straight and awaits silently for them to start their line of questioning once again.

The older office takes a seat across from Hyde while the other officer leans against the wall behind him. Hyde senses the cold stare of them both but doesn't let his discomfort show. He needs to keep up his front and make them believe his innocence. As hard as it will be, he has to give it a chance.

"So, _Hyde,_" the cop starts, saying his name with disdain. Hyde can tell they think he's guilty and there's nothing he can say that will change their minds. "let's just clarify a few details because I'm not sure I understand, what made you leave Wisconsin with Chrissy?"

"I'm not sure if you've been to Wisconsin, but most people don't need a reason to leave. It's a dump."

"But you left with Chrissy whom you tell us you had just met, is that correct?" the officer asks him.

Hyde nods his head. It sounds crazy when someone else says it and if he took enough time to think about it, he would probably come to the conclusion that his decision to come to New York _was _indeed stupid. However, there was just something about Chrissy that he couldn't explain. Even though he didn't know her, he felt like he did. She was one of the few people he could tolerate. Most of that had to do with the excitement of meeting someone so similar to him; someone who hated the government and organized religion. He appreciated her dismissal of love and her need for sex whenever and wherever.

"Yes" he simply replies, not wanting to say something that can hurt his case any more.

"Why did you decide to take off with her?" the officer presses on.

"Just an impulsive decision I guess" he responds.

"Right, now how did you end up at the Carson's residence tonight?"

Hyde nods his head and repeats his story. "Chrissy told me about a party her friends were having uptown. We got a ride with Ralph and on our way to the house he also mentioned a party so I had no reason to think we were doing something else. When we got to the house, I realized that something was wrong. There was no one there, the house was dark and Ralph started putting things in his pocket. I kept telling Chrissy that we should go but she said no. I couldn't just leave her with Ralph, I didn't trust the guy."

"Oh? Why not?" the cop behind him asks.

Hyde turns for a bit to look at him before turning to the guy sitting before him. "He seemed to have an agenda. I met him twice before and there's just something off about him."

"Something like what, exactly?"

"Just not a good person man. He always said things about getting his way and doing it at whatever cost. Don't get me wrong, I've met people like him before but there was something weird about him."

The cop behind him makes eye contact with the one sitting in front of Hyde as if he doesn't buy it. Hyde knows he has to do a better job convincing them that he was simply a pawn in the game. He needs to make them see him as a naïve kid from the Midwest who got caught up in a man's game with a New York thug.

"Did you know the gun is registered under your name?" one of the officer asks him and suddenly, Hyde's body tenses. He turns to look at the officers and notices a slight grin in both of their lips. What the hell are they talking about?

"What?" he stammers. How can that be?

"Our team traced the gun back to a store in Bushwick. The registration has your name on it" says the officer behind him. Hyde watches as he kicks off the wall and starts walking around him towards the other side of the table. Hyde immediately senses the officer's disdain for him.

"That's not possible, I've never even been to Bushwick" Hyde tells them, his voice weaker than he intended it to be.

"Listen kid, we're trying to figure things out here and unless you're honest with us, we can't help you."

"I'm telling you the truth, I've never been to Bushwick and I've never bought any gun man" Hyde tells them.

"Let's say we believe you, why don't you tell us what happened when Mr. Carson came home."

"You mean before he got shot?" Hyde asks the officers. They simply nod and wait for him to answer.

"I saw Ralph messing with a safe and I guess he couldn't get it to open because he kept pulling at the handle. He was at it for a while and then someone turned the light on and he got mad because he told us not to turn any of them on. When we turned around we saw the man standing there. He was scared and kept saying he has a family and that he wouldn't go to the police. He said we could just leave but Ralph didn't believe him and Chrissy kept yelling to shoot him."

"She kept yelling at who?" one of the officers asked.

"At me...I mean Ralph" Hyde answers quickly, correcting himself.

"Which is it, you or Ralph?"

"Ralph, she kept yelling at Ralph to shoot the guy."

"Right...so what happened next?"

"The guy just kept begging and all I remember after that is his body hitting the floor."

"So you're telling me that Mr. Carson came in, told you he wouldn't call us if you just left but Ralph still shot him?"

"I told you, Ralph didn't believe him. He thought that the guy would call the cops as soon as we left."

"Did you believe him?"

Hyde takes a moment to ponder the question. Part of him wants to think that the guy would have in fact kept his word and not call the cops. However, his rational side told him otherwise. No matter how nice this guy might be, he would definitely call the authorities and report the break in. "No, I guess I didn't" Hyde replies.

"You know what I think?" one of them starts and Hyde raises his shoulders. "I think you knew exactly what you were doing when you got into that house. I think you were in on the plan all along and this little story of yours is just to cover your ass. You're the only person still left who knows what happened in there so all we have to go on is your word. I think you went in there to take a few things and Mr. Carson came earlier than you expected so there was no other option but to kill him."

"That's not true. I told you I didn't know they were going there to rob the guy. They both told me we were going to a party" Hyde says forcefully.

The officer shakes his head and continues his theory. "I think you shot Mr. Carson. You probably had the gun and had to shoot him because Chrissy and Ralph told you to."

"You're wrong" Hyde urges on.

"Am I?"

"You are" Hyde says.

"I don't think I am. In fact, I think you killed Mr. Carson and then you killed Ralph and Chrissy too."

"Why the hell would I kill them?" Hyde asks.

"I can think of a few reasons. Maybe you thought it would be easy to get away with it if no one else was alive to refute your story. Or maybe, Chrissy was having an affair with Ralph and you killed them out of spite."

"That's crazy, I wouldn't do that."

"Oh, I think you would. We did a background check on you Hyde, you have quiet a record back home."

"I never killed anyone in Point Place" Hyde tells him, anger rising in his voice.

"No, you didn't. But you did kill someone here" the officer says.

Hyde stares coldly at him and narrows his eyes. There's no way they can prove anything. Like he said, all they have to go on is his word and there's no way he's going to hang himself. If he has to pin this on two dead people, he will.

"So why did you kill them Hyde?" the cop urges on.

"I want a lawyer" Hyde says as he sits back on his chair and folds his arms across his chest.

His confidence, however, quickly falters when the cop's grin widens and then nod their head. Hyde watches as they leave their spots and make their way towards the door, never looking back at him.

**Author's Note: I want to apologize for taking so long to update, been a bit busy lately. Also, I'm not extremely knowledgeable on the legal part of arresting/convicting someone for murder so if any of you has any advice/information I can use, please let me know. I would seriously appreciate it. **


	12. Chapter 12

Hyde sighs as his state appointed lawyer continues to berate him for saying anything to the police without his presence. It's not so much the lecture that annoys Hyde but rather that he is being represented by a kid not much older than him who is probably fresh out of law school. This is probably his first big case, much to Hyde's dismay. Between spewing legal terms and asking Hyde mediocre questions about the events of that night, such as the color of the masks they wore and how many rooms he went into.

"Why is that important?" he asks his lawyer, Everett Parker. Besides being seemingly incompetent, he epitomizes everything Hyde is against. Something about how pressed his suit is and the shine of his shoes bothers Hyde. Here is a person who obviously grew up being privileged, perhaps a little snotty and too confident. He would get along with the popular cheerleaders back home, or worse, Jackie Burkhart.

Hyde imagines that this is the kind of guy Jack Burkhart would approve of. Handsome, rich and educated. _Only the best for daddy's princess _ he once heard Jackie state. Surely this guy would leave Michael Kelso dead in his tracks.

"We need to document every movement you made inside the residence. It's important to have an exact timeline."

"Listen man, that's cool and all but do you think we can do this tomorrow or something? I'm exhausted. What time is it anyway?"

"Almost midnight. Look Mr. Hyde, I don't think you understand how important it is for us to get all the details down so you don't forget anything. It is imperative that we build our case and get on the same page here" Everett says while opening his briefcase and pulling out a few sheets of blank paper and a fancy pen.

"You don't think I'm taking this seriously? They're trying to pin three bodies on me. You bet your ass I'm taking this seriously. I'm just tired as hell man, I've been at this for hours."

"Do you think I want to be here? I would rather not spend my night at a police station but here I am. We're here for as long as it takes to make sure you get out of this thing scot-free. So how about it? Tell me what happened tonight."

Hyde throws his head back and swings his arms back, his hands coming together to support his head. Frankly, he is in no mood to recollect his story and tell it to this kid, but if he's the only person who can give him a fighting chance, he'll have no choice but to do so. He quickly straightens up on the chair and looks into Everett's eyes. They are surprisingly filled with both amusement and curiosity.

Hyde ponders for a moment whether he can make up an unbelievable story and make this guy fall for it. He might be able to get some entertainment out of this and see just how gullible his lawyer is. If he falls for it, he can always ask for someone else to represent him. He instantly discarded the idea when he realized just severe his situation is. He took a deep breath and begins retelling the same story he told the cops. Hyde makes sure not to leave any details out, not the fake party invitation, not wanting to leave Chrissy alone, and Ralph shooting Mr. Carson. He makes sure not to make the same mistake he did with the cops and slip up.

Throughout his story, Everett interrupts with a few questions of his own. "Had you seen the gun before?" or "describe your relationship with Chrissy and how you met Ralph."

Hyde takes his time answering the questions, trying to be as truthful as possible so he won't have to remember too many lies. "Things were alright with us. Chrissy isn't the kind of girl who likes to be tied down to anyone and sometimes that created problems between us" he responds.

Something about saying her name and admitting that things between them weren't that great is interesting. In the last few hours since her death, Hyde could only think about the good memories they had. He recalls the nights they spent out in clubs checking out bands, getting high with their roommates or just randomly exploring the city. She confided in him how insignificant she felt in such a big place, her fears reflecting his own, though he wouldn't admit it. In a moment of vulnerability, she told him about her family.

"My father abused my sisters and I when my mother was out working. She was the nicest woman, but so naïve. She really wanted to think more of him and wouldn't let us say anything bad about him. Even though he was a horrible person, and everyone else knew it, she loved him. I blame her more than him sometimes. Crazy right?" he remembers her saying on one of their night strolls. He hadn't responded, couldn't think of the right thing to say. Coming from a bad family himself, he's never had to comfort someone. His lack of response didn't seem to bother her though, as she told him about her sisters and how she protected them as much as she could.

"I didn't choose to be this way" she told him as she puffed on her cigarette and Hyde wondered if anyone chose to be how they are. The obvious answer being no, because everyone would wish for more. Yet, they are all held accountable for how they turn out.

"Zeke, how did he meet Ralph?"

"I don't know man, we didn't really talk about that stuff. He just gave her Ralph's number and she arranged things with him."

"Arranged what?"

"This I guess. She mentioned his name a few times, referred to him as her friend and met with him a few times."

"How did you know Zeke gave her Ralph's number?" Everett asks as he scribbles a few notes on the paper.

"I assumed he did because he said he knew him. Chrissy's not from around here so I figured she met Ralph through him."

Everett shoots a few more questions at him and continues writing his responses down. This goes on for nearly an hour. Hyde yawns a few times throughout the testimony and each time his lawyers would roll his eyes as if to scold him for not taking things seriously.

Sometime after one in the morning, Everett stuffs the papers into his briefcase and shuts it closed. He raises his hand and scratches the area just above his eyebrow.

"So this party story, you're sticking to it?" he asks flatly.

Hyde furrows his forehead. "What do you mean if I'm sticking to it? That's what happened."

"Look, if that's the story you want to tell me fine. You might even convince a few members of the jury, but there is no way a prosecutor will fall for it. They will pick your story apart."

Hyde shakes his head. He knows his story isn't perfect, but he thought it was at least good enough to earn him some credibility. Rather than be portrayed as the sociopath killer, he can play the card of protective guy who was duped into this situation.

"Why didn't you leave the house as soon as you figured out what was going on?" the lawyer asks, looking straight into Hyde's eyes.

"I told you, I couldn't leave Chrissy there with Ralph, I didn't trust him" Hyde replies.

"You're physically stronger than she is, why didn't you get her out of the house?"

"You mean by force?" Hyde asks.

"Sure, if you were so concerned about her, you should have gotten her out of the situation completely."

"It's hard to get out when the crazy guy has a gun don't you think?"

"Oh, so you knew Ralph had a gun before Mr. Carson came into the house?"

"Yes, he took it out when he went to open the safe."

"Why did he take it out, did he intend to shoot someone with it?"

Hyde shakes his head. "I don't know, he just pulled it out."

"At any point, did he point the gun at you?" Everett asks.

Hyde shakes his head again.

"At Chrissy?" Again, Hyde shakes his head no.

"So there is no reason to assume he was a threat to either of you, was there?"

"Look man, I told you I didn't trust the guy. Something about him was off."

"What was off about him exactly?" Everette asks.

"Are you my lawyer or his?" Hyde asks annoyed at the series of questions being thrown his way.

"I don't represent corpses. Just answer the question."

"I don't know, he just didn't seem like a trustworthy person" Hyde replies.

"Can you tell me why Ralph shot himself, as you claim he did?"

"I don't know. I guess he didn't want to get caught when the cops came. He probably knew how bad things would get after he shot the guy."

"What about Chrissy," Everett continues. He stands up from the chair and starts pacing in a large circle around the tiny room. "Why did Chrissy kill herself?"

Hyde pauses for a minute and looks down at his hands. He subtly shakes his head, unable to answer the question. He still can't figure out why she would do that.

"So let's recap, for my sake. You lived with Chrissy, whom you admit to having a somewhat volatile relationship with. Now, Chrissy, who according to you was friends with Ralph, invited you to a party. You both drove with Ralph, who you didn't trust, uptown and broke into Mr. Carson's house. Inside the house, you realized that the party was actually a robbery but rather than leave, you stayed to protect Chrissy. Now Ralph had a gun, which turns out to be registered under your name, but at no point did he aim it at either of you but he did shoot Mr. Carson. Then, when the police came he shot himself and the Chrissy shot herself soon after. Is that right?" Everett asks, his tone sarcastic.

Hyde lets out a loud sigh and he realizes just how ludicrous the story sounds. "Yes, that's right" he says sticking to it.

"It all sounds a bit suspicious though, doesn't it? I mean, here are two people you don't have the best relationships with and they both happen to kill themselves. It's a bit strange, and we can't exactly ask them what happened that night, can we?"

Hyde rises from his seat, nearly knocking the chair back. "If you're insinuating I killed them, you're out of your goddamn mind" he hisses.

Everett smirks and walks back over to the table. He reclaims his seat and folds his arms across his chest. "Do you see how easily I can make you look guilty?"

Hyde's eyes narrow and an anger builds inside him. He wants to reach over the table, grab this kid by the collar and beat him until he can't remember his own name. "That shit isn't fucking cool man" he says through gritted teeth.

"No, you're right, it isn't. But that's the kind of stuff you better be ready for. The prosecutor already has enough incriminating evidence against you to pin this whole thing on you and send you to jail for a really long time. There are too many wholes in your story for it to be plausible. So, you're either going to tell me the truth or accept that you're nailing your own coffin."

Hyde stares at his lawyer and slowly retakes his seat. A long moment goes in which he thinks about just how to approach the situation. He realizes just how much his own story can be twisted against him and make things worse than they are. Instead of being pinned for one murder, he can be put in for three. He knows that any prosecutor will see a Midwestern stoner who killed a decent New Yorker and immediately try to put him away. So, rather than take the fault for three bodies, he'll just have to take the wrap for the one he is guilty of.

Hyde brings his hand up and rests it on top of his head, slowly scratching his scalp to release some tension.

"Ralph didn't shoot Mr. Carson" he starts and pauses when Everett goes to open his briefcase once more.

**Author's Note: Alright, so I had a lot of fun writing this chapter and thinking of ways to turn Hyde's story against him. I do have to admit that for the first time since starting the story I'm not sure where I want it to go. Also, I initially intended for it to be just 15-chapters but that's just three chapters away and I might not be entirely wrapped with it by then. Back to the drawing board for now lol.**


	13. Chapter 13

Hyde has never been one to share, not even with his best friend. Being someone who grew up with pretty much nothing, he has trouble letting other people borrow his belongings. Once during third grade, he let Andrew Feldman use his favorite pencil to finish a worksheet and when he asked for it back, Andrew wouldn't give it to him. Becoming upset, Hyde told Ms. Gruber about it and she didn't believe that the pencil belonged to him. "I do believe I saw Andrew using the pencil Steven" she claimed. In vain, Hyde tried to get the pencil back. Since that day, Hyde doesn't give his things to anyone.

Ironically, he is now forced to share a six by eight foot cell in the county jail. His cellmate, "Big T" is easily twice his size and every bit as intimidating as a criminal can be. In the three days he's spent here, Hyde has tried in vain to stay out of Big T's way which is hard to do in such a confined space. Since his cellmate takes up most of the space, Hyde often just lies on his cot, staring up at the ceiling and thinking of ways to build up his defence.

He has grown to deeply regret telling Everett the truth about killing Mr. Carson. While it can potentially get him off the hook for the deaths of Chrissy and Ralph, he will now have to face whatever sentence comes from a murder case. During his hour-long visits with Everett, he asks what his sentence might look like if he does get convicted. Everett always dodges the questions and assures him that he will try his best to get him off but if he does get convicted, he will get him the best deal possible. There's never a mention of numbers, which only makes Hyde more anxious.

Of course, it didn't help his anxiety one bit to have Big T pacing ceaselessly back and forth at odd hours of the day. Usually, around six in the morning, Hyde would be woken up by the heavy shuffles of his cellmate's sneakers and his breathy grunts. For the most part, they spent their days doing pretty much this; Hyde laying restless on his bunk as Big T scruffs the floor.

The one time Hyde attempted to start a conversation, he had been told to fuck off and mind his business, which he was more than glad to do.

As annoying as Big T's walking back and forth is, the thing Hyde hates more is the endless hours he has to do nothing but think. For twenty hours, he can do nothing but lay on his back and remember all the mistakes he's made that have led him here. At first all he thought about was the break in. In three days, he has gone from missing Chrissy to completely hating her. He hates every part of him that still thinks of her as a goddess of anarchy, a queen of all things punk. Had it not been for her, he would be in Point Place with his friends, enjoying the simple things. His mind reels and he has to remind himself that their relationship had never been ideal and he is just glorifying her because she's dead. Less than a week ago, he would have jumped at the chance of telling her what a bitch she was and abandoning her in this ruthless city. Surely she would be able to fend for herself.

Having time to reflect, however, has allowed Hyde to realize that sooner or later, he would have ended here anyway. Every decision he made over the years was indicative of his awful fate.

Fate.

The word sat heavy on his mind. As a self-proclaimed atheist, he has grown to dismiss the idea of a pre-determined destiny. Through our conscious choices, we decide the paths we take. The idea of a higher being or a bigger plan is ludicrous and left very little room for control, which Hyde didn't like.

However, remembering all the people back home who predicted his demise, Hyde has to wonder whether this path was chosen for him. Chrissy could have stopped at any city and gone into any burger joint. Hell, she could have easily struck up a conversation with anyone in the midwest. Yet, she ended up in Point Place, at Fatso Burger, talking to him. Had things ended differently, had Chrissy turned out to be the girl of his dreams, Hyde would have called their encounter a struck of luck.

What would he call this though? Fate would seem cliché and a coincidence would diminish the experience completely.

"Hey, kid" Big T says. Hyde turns his head to look at the older man. This is the first time in nearly three days they have interacted.

"Huh?" he replies, trying to show as little effort as possible.

"That lawyer you got, he any good?" Big T asks. Hyde sits up on his bunk and his eyes follow Big T as he continues pacing the small space. Hyde simply shrugs his shoulders and utters an incomprehensible sound.

"You telling me you hired this guy and don't even know if he's any good?"

"I didn't hire him" Hyde replies firmly.

Big T slows down a bit and looks up at Hyde and then back at the floor. He does this several times which makes Hyde uneasy.

"You're not from around here are you?" he suddenly asks, taking Hyde by surprise. He didn't peg him to be one for small talk but he figures as long as the conversation is civil and non-threatening, he should go along with it.

"Wisconsin" he replies.

"Midwestern boy. I could tell from the accent" Big T says as he picks up speed again.

"I don't have an accent" Hyde says a bit insulted.

"Everyone has an accent. New Yorkers have accents too, though they like to pretend they don't."

"What does a New York accent sound like exactly?" Hyde asks. In the months he's been in the city, he hasn't picked up an accent from the people he's spoken to.

"It's real subtle, but over the top at the same time ya know?" Big T responds. Hyde scrunches up his face a bit in confusion. Hopefully this isn't what awaits for him if he goes to prison. Just a bunch of criminals trying to make sense out of nothing.

"Sure" he says dismissively, not wanting to prompt a longer, and more confusing, explanation.

"I've lived here my whole life and never got called out for an accent 'cause it's what everyone's used to. Then I head up to Vermont and they can tell where I'm from right away."

"I see" Hyde says, growing even more uninterested with the conversation. He sighs deeply and shifts a bit on his cot to rest his back against the wall. "What are you in for?" Hyde brings himself to ask. It's a question that has been in the back of his mind since he was assigned the cell three days ago. If he's being charged with murder, would the cops put him in a cell with someone like him?

Big T takes a second and finally stops pacing. He presses his back against the cell bars and chuckles. Hyde furrows his forehead, bracing himself to hear a demented story by a probable sociopath.

"You'd probably call bullshit if I told you" he says.

"Try me" Hyde replies.

"So I was walking down Bedford, just minding my business. I was on my way to pick up my kid from my ex-wife's house when I hear someone yelling for help. At first I think I'm just hearing things ya know?" he says before looking towards Hyde to see if he's listening. Hyde nods his head in acknowledgment.

Big T also nods and continues "but then I keep hearing the screams so I rush over to the end of the block and I see this woman struggling with this guy. I run over and pull the dude off her and the chick is scared so I make sure she's okay. Then this asshole tackles me and tries to beat the hell out of me. You should have seen the little shrimp man. Not gonna lie, he put up a good fight for a little guy. Hell, long story short, the bastard called the cops and they're charging me with assault. Can you believe that shit? I'm the good guy and he gets to walk around messing with other chicks and I'm here."

Hyde stares at Big T, his mouth slightly agape. The big guy, who has frightened him in all his days here, is actually the hero.

Ironic. That's how Hyde would describe his life.

He shakes his head from side to side and crashes his head back down against his pillow. He lays there silently, closing his eyes as Big T starts pacing once again.

**Author's Note: I apologize for not updating sooner, I was trying to figure out what to do with this chapter. I have thought about the direction I want to take the story on and to get there, I'm going to skip forward a few weeks in the following chapter. I've already started working on it and will hopefully put it up by the end of next week. Thanks for reading!**


	14. Chapter 14

Hyde sits patiently in the wooden chair as Everett shuffles through a large stack of pages inside his briefcase. Each crisp white page is covered in hundreds of typed words on both sides, words which Hyde can barely make sense of. He does recognize Everett's handwriting on a loose notepad paper and he reaches over the table to grab hold of it. He slowly reads through the copious notes written on the page and nods his head when he sees it's just notes of their previous conversation.

A short few minutes later, Everett closes the briefcase and places some of the pages in front of Hyde.

"The D.A. decided to take your case to court" Everett says.

Hyde's heart starts beating faster and he can't find the words to say. He was hoping Everett could strike a deal with the D.A. and keep him out of court.

"I know you're disappointed and I tried pushing for a plea bargain despite the charge but they are not willing to budge."

"So what happens now?" Hyde asks. He takes a deep breath to try and soften the blow and calm himself down. Even though the odds are against him, he knows he has to start being logical about the situation. Any slip up can easily get him locked away for the rest of his life. Despite Everett's efforts, he needs to get mentally prepared for whatever might be thrown his way. Now that there is no deal on the table and he will have to be tried by a jury, he can not afford to mess up.

"There's the preliminary hearing coming up in two weeks. We will just have to go in front of the judge and I'll try my best to plea your case and try to get you off. Let me be completely honest though, things are not going to look good in there. The D.A. has enough evidence to make a damning case against you."

"Listen man, I don't care what needs to be done. I just need to get the hell out of here, okay? Damn it, my scary ass cell mate got out yesterday and now I have some dork who won't stop crying every fifteen minutes. Whatever you need me to do, I'll do it" Hyde tells Everett.

Everett nods his head and grabs hold of the pages he took out of his briefcase. "I had one of the interns at the office type some information I think will be useful. It tells you the different steps of a case like yours and what you should expect. I also had her make a copy of the notes I've taken of our conversations. Read through them, prepare as best you can and I'll stop by a few days before the hearing to go through the case."

"Cool" Hyde replies as he picks the pages off the table. He skims through them while Everett gathers the rest of his belongings and gets ready to leave. Hyde notices Everett opening up his briefcase once more and pulling out a packet of lined paper, envelopes, a pencil and a few stamps.

"I haven't been doing this too long but I've met a few guys in your place and a place like this...it's not good. I know you don't have family here, but I thought it might be a good to write to someone back home. Let some of the anxiety out." Everett slides the materials across the table towards Hyde and closes the briefcase back up. "I'll see you in a few days" he tells Hyde before grabbing the briefcase and heading out of the visiting room.

Hyde stares after his lawyer and feels an inexplicable sense of relief. Despite his first impression of Everett, he has proven to be a decent guy and hopefully he'll be able to help him out. Hyde grabs the materials off the table and heads over to one of the guards who leads him back to his cell.

Once the metal bars are slid back in place, Hyde takes the few steps towards his top bunk, anxious to write. He spots his newest cellmate, Nick, curled up on his bunk. Hyde shakes his head and throws the paper on his cot before climbing up the metal steps. He slides in, laying down on his stomach and starts ripping up the plastic wrapper covering the 150 loose pages. Pulling one of the pages out, he places it on top of the other pages and stares at the blank, blue lines.

There aren't many people he would want to write to. His parents aren't even an option and would probably not even bother reading the letter once the saw it was from him. Hell, he hasn't spoken to them since he left Point Place months earlier. Chances are, one of the is locked up somewhere and the other is passed out drunk in some remote motel room miles from home.

He could write to Eric. Actually Eric is probably the most reasonable person he could write to. The skinny guy has been his best friend since they were kids and has always stood by his side, despite some of his questionable decisions. Surely, his friend would worry about him try and find a way to help him out. For this reason, Hyde decides not to write to Forman. He doesn't want someone else trying to solve his problems for him.

Donna would probably just write back and call him an idiotic dillhole. She would let him learn his lesson before also trying to make things right. Kelso and Fez are both too moronic to comprehend what he writes and there is no way in hell he would ever write to Jackie Burkhart. She would end up showing his letter to every other rich snob in Wisconsin and tell them all how right they all were about him.

He taps the pencil against the page when he hears Nick sniffling and murmuring something to God. Hyde rolls his eyes in annoyance and taps the pencil harder to try and drown out the noise. Somehow, Big T's endless pacing is more tolerable than the crying.

All of a sudden, the crying gives Hyde an idea. There's always been someone he can go to who has understood him and looked out for him. For as long as he can remember, he has had someone who doesn't judge him but merely offers friendly advice and has tried to guide him in the right direction. Had he only listened to the advice more, had he just stayed in Point Place like he was told to. Hyde lifts the pencil and brings the point down to the page.

_Dear Mrs. Forman,_

_I hope things are good back home. It's been some time since I spoke to Eric but he told me you and Red are doing well. I'm sure you're surprised I'm writing you but I have a few things to get off my chest._

_This will probably make no sense to you but I keep thinking about a line from a song "Taken from the jungle by crime."_

_I keep thinking about what you and Red told me before I left, about New York being a tough place. You were right..._

**Author's Note: An update, finally! Thank you all very much for the amazing reviews. I am not good at getting back to you all, but I read everything and it means a lot that you're enjoying this story. I actually re-wrote this chapter at least three times before finishing it and this is what I ended up with. I'm happy with it and I hope you all enjoy it. I really want to wrap the story up in four/five more chapters so I'll try to crank up the pace and have it completed by early-mid August. Wish me luck.**


	15. Chapter 15

Two weeks after a disappointing preliminary hearing, Hyde lays in his cot as Nick attempts to read a letter he has written to his mother out loud. Between each cry of desperation and anguish, Hyde only manages to hear the parts in which his cell mate apologizes for his bad choices and the suffering she must be going through because of him.

"Being here so far from home, I realize that all the things I did on the outside were not worth it. Behind these bars I continuously ask myself why I chose the path I did and though I lament by decisions (more so than the consequences), I find myself praying more for you..."

Hyde's ears immediately perk up when he hears the last line of Nick's letter and he asks him to read it again. The words intrigue him more the second time around. It's been a few weeks since he first got locked up in this place and yet he realizes he hasn't done much soul searching. The entire time he has spent either preparing for his case or cursing the day he met Chrissy and that bastard Ralph. He hasn't once analyzed his own part in the story and he sure as hell hasn't prayed to any non-entity.

Once, for a brief period, he thought about Mr. Carson and his family, who is now left to involuntarily pick up the pieces. He sees flashes of the lovely picture of Carson with his kids and just as he did that night, Hyde creates stories about what their life might have been like. The perfect little America family, going out to picnics on Saturdays and church on Sundays, thanking the lord for the privileges given to them.

It's a twisted thing to think about your victim's life and place yourself in a role bigger than the one you actually played.

"What do you think?" Nick asks as he wipes some lingering tears off his face.

"Oh, it's cool man. She'll dig it" Hyde replies and slumps back on his cot.

An hour or so of complete silence pass in which Hyde tries his best to think about those besides himself affected by his decision. His friends back in Point Place now know of his circumstances thanks to Kitty and he's been allowed to take a two minute phone call from Eric who assured him they would to everything in their power to get him out of the predicament. Right before the two minutes were up, Red Forman had snatched the phone away and scolded him about what a dumbass he is.

"Yes sir, I know" had been Hyde's reply.

From his bed, Hyde can see Nick scribbling some words on a loose leaf paper, probably one of his many poems about life in the joint.

"Hey Nick" Hyde asks while sitting up and sitting on the edge of the bed. Nick stops writing and turns to look at Hyde.

"You're in for the same thing as me right? Has your lawyer said anything about how long it'll be before you see the judge?"

Much to Hyde's surprise, Nick lets out a bitter chuckle and nods his head from side to side. "You're one of those optimists aren't you?" he asks Hyde.

Hyde instantly winces at the response and remembers when Ralph said those words to him. "No, I'm not."

"You'll be lucky if you get out of here in a year. These kind of cases take a while. I'm surprised your lawyer hasn't told you that already."

Hyde sits still, anger slowly boiling inside of him. How the hell could Everett not have told him anything? At least a year in this shithole?

From all the information he's been getting and the swiftness in which the meetings and hearings have taken place, he was sure things would be underway within a month or two. He makes a mental note to curse Everett during his next visit and get some real information.

"How long do you think we'll be here if they...you know" Hyde asks once again, curious about what Nick knows.

"Well my lawyer ballparks twenty to life if they "you know," but we can't get caught up in the details man. If you do, you'll never make it out of here sane."

Again, Hyde is shocked by the vast amount of time this might cost him.

"If we get out of here" he flatly responds before throwing his head back and closing his eyes in defeat.

Nick laughs and turns back to look at his paper. "You're not as optimistic as I thought."

**Author's Note: This one is short but I wanted to give some logistics that Hyde has been curious about since his lawyer doesn't give him all the answers. The next chapter will be some time into the future, closer to the trial.**


	16. Chapter 16

Hyde makes another straight line on the paper and counts all the tally marks together. 273. He's spent just over nine months in prison awaiting this day. After countless meetings and disappointments with Everett, Hyde will finally be in front of a judge and the handful of people who will decide the rest of his life. He stands straight and reaches for the tie Everett let him borrow. He stares at the long, black piece, unsure of how to put it on.

"Here man," says the officer standing with him in the room. Hesitantly, Hyde walks over to him and hands over the tie. The officer pulls on Hyde's collar and within seconds makes a perfect knot and pulls gently to even out the tie. "A man should know how to tie one of these" he tells Hyde as he takes a step back to check his work. Hyde looks down at the perfectly knotted tie and nods his head.

The officer turns and quickly retakes his post leaving Hyde to think about his case. In less than an hour, the proceedings will begin and though he's been anxiously counting the days for this, an overwhelming sense of nerves rise in the pit of his stomach. Who knows what can happen in there? The D.A. has proven to be merciless and will most likely portray him as a monster.

_Aren't you though? A monster? _

Hyde subtly shakes his head from side to side, trying to eliminate the thought from his mind. He's not a monster. He's a kid who made a stupid mistake, who got caught up in the New York hype. A monster wouldn't feel regret or think about his victim...sympathize with his family. He's not a monster at all.

He walks over to a wooden chair in the corner of the room and sits, trying his best to stay positive as he waits for Everett to show up and go through last minute details of the trial.

Twenty-three minutes later, Everett strolls into the room, his brown leather briefcase in one hand and a clipboard in the other. Before he even reaches Hyde, he is already spewing logistics and tactics he'll use to try and win the case.

"She's a tough one, that prosecutor, but I have a good feeling about this. She's going to try and sway the jurors in her favor, probably throw every trick in the book. I just need you to stay focused and remember everything we've talked about" Everett says as he finally takes a seat in a chair a few feet away. He pulls the chair closer to Hyde's and places his briefcase and clipboard on the floor.

"What sort of tricks do you think she'll pull?" Hyde asks, wanting to be as ready as possible for what is going to be thrown his way.

"She'll probably put Carson's family on the stand, make the jury feel for them and make you look like the bad guy. It's an obvious move to make but she's smart and if she plays her cards right, it might work. All we need to do is make sure she doesn't convince them too much. You need to look remorseful, take responsibility for what you've done and apologize. Reformation, Hyde, that's out goal remember."

Hyde nods his head in agreement. Reformation. He's had nine months to accept what he's done and now he just has to show those people that he's not the monster they think he is. He needs to prove that he has changed.

"How are you feeling?" Everett asks

"I'm alright" Hyde replies, not wanting his nerves to show.

"Good. The only way we can win this is by staying calm. When you start getting nervous is when things start to go wrong. Trust me, I've seen it happen countless times. People go up there and say all sorts of crazy things when they're under pressure."

"Right."

"Okay, I'm going to get going and meet with the judge. I'll see you out there in thirty minutes" Everett says getting up from the chair.

"Alright man" Hyde says and stands to shake Everett's hand. As he grasps his lawyer's hand, he feels the moisture building up in his palm and quickly lets go.

Everett frowns and slowly shakes his head. "You need to trust me Hyde. I'm going to do the best I can, but I need you to stay confident that we _will_ win this."

"No, I know man, I trust you" Hyde replies and rubs his moist hands against his pant legs.

"Good" Everett says and quickly turns towards the door, leaving Hyde alone with the officer once again.

Thirty minutes. Hyde inhales deeply and counts to ten. He exhales and glances over at the officer by the door, his expressionless face showing no sign of emotions. Hyde takes a few minutes to study the officer's face. He tries to move the muscles of his face to imitate it but fails. The nervous twitches are involuntary and just manage to increase his nerves. He sighs in frustration. He glances up at the circular clock above the door.

Twenty-two minutes.

A little over thirty minutes later, the officer walks away from the door and towards Hyde's chair. "It's time" he instructs Hyde while pulling out a pair of handcuffs from his utility belt. Hyde watches as the officer unlocks the cuffs and holds them up to him. Slowly, Hyde rises from the chair and turns around, extending his wrists behind him. Gently, the officer locks the cuffs in place and pats Hyde's shoulder. Hyde nods and they both start making their way through a large wooden door that leads into the court room. Before pushing the door open, the officer says "good luck kid."

"Thanks" responds Hyde and lets out a breath as the officer opens the door.

The room is dim, the exact opposite of what Hyde expected and with the exception of the lawyers, bailiff and the jurors, only a few people are there. Hyde instantly spots Everett who is whispering something to someone who Hyde assumes is a colleague. To their right is the prosecutor; a tall, lean woman with blonde hair pulled back in a tight pony tail. She is shuffling through a short stack of pages.

The officer directs Hyde over to a chair next to Everett and unlocks the handcuffs. Once seated, Hyde glances over at the jurors. He counts nine women and three men. A few short minutes after,a petite woman walks into the room with a notepad and several pens and sits in a small desk a few feet from the judge's stand.

"Who's that?" Hyde leans over and whispers to Everett.

"Stenographer. She takes notes of the case" he replies quickly and gets back to conversing with his associate.

Without a response, Hyde watches the small woman spread out the pens across the top of the desk and flip open the notepad to a clean page. She starts writing a few things in it, her hand moving quicker than Hyde thought possible. For several more minutes, he focuses on her. Several times he squints his eyes and tries, in vain, to see what she's writing.

Next, he turns to look behind him and see the few people sitting in the bleacher-like seats. There he sees an older couple, both holding small cups of what Hyde assumes is coffee and quietly talking. A few seats back he sees a man, his dark hair gelled back and a notebook in his hand. He is also looking around the room and for an instant, makes eye contact with Hyde. Hyde offers the guy a small smile which is not reciprocated. The guy simple narrows his eyes and looks down at his notebook. Hyde rolls his eyes in annoyance and keeps looking around the public.

On the row of seats directly behind him, he sees a girl looking directly at him. Her blonde hair is down, with a few strands framing her frail face. Hyde stares for a moment, trying to figure out where he's seen her before. She waves at him and flashes a small smile. Hyde returns the gesture and slowly turns back around. He tries hard to remember where he's seen the girl before, but his memory fails him and he quickly goes back to observing the room.

Everett turns to Hyde and fills him in on a few more details of how the trial will pan out. "We're estimating this to last at least two weeks and then it's up to the jurors to decide" he tells Hyde who just nods and stares down at his hands. What's two more weeks? After nearly a year, he's just happy things are finally under way.

"All rise" the bailiff calls out. Through a door on the left side of the room, the judge walks out. The elderly man dons a long black robe and wears his gray hair short. He walks slowly towards his seat behind the stand. Once he has taken his seat, everyone else in the room follows suit. The judge begins talking almost immediately and for some reason, Hyde can't concentrate on what he's saying. He turns back around and sees the blonde girl still looking at him. She smiles once again and then casts her eyes towards the judge. Hyde senses Everett nudging him and he quickly turns around.

_Focus_ Hyde tells himself and listens intently at what the judge is saying.

Very soon, it is time for opening statements. Hyde grows nervous as the prosecutor begins organizing her materials and rising from her chair. Quietly, she walks towards the center of the room and turns to face the jurors.

"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury: we are here today, under unfortunate circumstances, not just to fulfill our civic duties but rather to bring justice to the horrific tragedy that now surrounds the Carson family. Joseph Carson was an outstanding citizen and a devoted father and husband. On the night of October 28th, Mr. Carson met his untimely demise when the defendant, Steven J. Hyde, broke into his house with two other culprits and shot him. Now, ladies and gentlemen, you will hear multiple versions of what really happened that night but what I want you to remember is that Mr. Hyde is, without a shadow of a doubt, a murderer. He consciously and willingly entered the Carson's home, attempted to steal their belongings, and killed Joseph Carson. While the defense will try to plead their case, keep in mind that a family is suffering over the loss of their loved one. And why is he dead? Because this man just wanted to kill someone. I will try my hardest to prove to you that Mr. Hyde is guilty and should be found as such. Thank you" she concludes. She turns on her heels and walks back to her seat.

Hyde's stomach turns as several members of the jury begin whispering among themselves, shooting him unsettling looks. He slumps down on his chair and looks at Everett on his right, who is shuffling through some of his own pages before getting up. Everett walks to the other side of the table and stands in front of Hyde, his attention solely on the jurors.

"Members of the jury, I want to thank you for fulfilling your constitutional right and giving people like my client the opportunity to prove their innocence. I don't want to stand here and overwhelm you with details of the case, because you will be hearing them throughout the duration of the trial. What I do want to tell you is that despite the image the prosecution will paint of my client, he is a good person. In the months leading up to this trial, I have gotten to know him. Now, I pride myself in being a good judge of character and I wholeheartedly believe that Steven Hyde has a good one. While you are meeting my client under these circumstances, I want you to keep an unbiased opinion and give him an opportunity to show you that he is not, in any way, a monster. There is no stronger desire than the desire to find someone responsible. That is exactly what the prosecution will do throughout this trial. They will tell you anything to make you convict my client. While the prosecution will try to portray my client as a murderer, you will find the evidence insufficient. Why, you may ask? Because my client, Steven J. Hyde, is _not _guilty. Thank you."

Hyde lets out a huff as Everett walks over and retakes his seat.

"Posture" Everett hisses towards Hyde once he's seated again. Immediately, Hyde sits up right and folds his hands on his lap.

As the judge begins talking once again, asking the prosecution to prepare to deliver evidence against him, Hyde remembers the officer's expressionless face and tries once again to emulate it. Having someone go over the details of that night will surely be difficult to deal with, but he can't give away his anxiety. Anything he does from now on is being scrutinized, and he will be damned if a simple expression costs him his freedom.


	17. Chapter 17

On the fifth day of the trial, Hyde sits anxiously in his seat as the prosecutor questions her third witness, Rose Carson. The late wife of Joseph Carson was reluctant to take the stand, but after much persuasion, agreed to testify. Much to Hyde's dismay, the pain of having her husband murdered is still fresh and her answers show her determination to hold someone responsible.

"Where did you and your husband go that night?" the prosecutor asks.

"We went to an event hosted by a close family friend over at the Dixie Hotel. Our friend is one of the hotel's investors and invited us to a private party the management was hosting in celebration of the hotel's new name."

"For the record, what is the hotel called now?" the prosecutor asks, turning slightly towards the stenographer who nods her head and listens intently to Mrs. Carson's answer.

"Hotel Carter. It's over on 43rd street."

"Thank you. Now, you said earlier you had to leave the event early. Can you tell us why that is?"

Mrs. Carson nods. "I received a call from my mother. One of the employees at the hotel escorted me to the lobby to take the call. I was very worried because our children were staying with my parents that night, I thought something might have happened to them. Once I answered the phone she tells me that my father wasn't feeling well and that they might have to take him to the hospital. My brother, Robert, luckily lives near them so he would be able to go with them while the kids stayed with his wife Marissa. Once I got off the phone, I went to find Joseph and we decided to go back home in case we needed to go my parent's house."

"Was Mr. Carson upset that you had to leave early?" the lawyer asks Mrs. Carson.

"No, not at all. Jo is...was a very good man. He was actually the one who suggested we go home. I felt guilty because he was having such a good time, but of course leaving was the right thing to do."

"So he wasn't hostile at all?"

"No."

"Okay, so can you tell us what happened when you got home?"

"Well, we pulled up to our house maybe forty minutes later and we noticed these lights coming from inside. We found it strange because we always turn off all the lights. I knew something was wrong and wanted to go to our neighbor's home and call the police but Jo insisted that I was just being paranoid and that he would go inside and check. I urged him not to, I just knew something wasn't right" she says, her voice cracking towards the end.

Hyde, who has avoided eye contact throughout her testimony, looks up and sees her wiping her eyes. He notices how deep the creases around her eyes are and how pale her skin is. Her hair, which was probably vibrant once, is lack luster and thin. His crime is personified in her. He quickly looks back down, overcome by the guilt of what he's done.

"What happened next?"

"Jo got out of the car and I watched as he walked towards the house. He walks in through the front door and the light in the living room turns on. That's all that happens for what seems now like an eternity. It couldn't have been more than five minutes. That's when I heard it."

"Heard what?"

Mrs. Carson remains silent for a while, lowering her head to look down at her hands folded across her lap. When she looks back up, she turns and sees Hyde looking up at her once again. For a short lived moment, they make eye contact and her anger rises again.

"The gun...going off."

"What did you do then?"

"I screamed and ran outside to the first house I could get to. The neighbors let me in and I called the police" she replies.

"Thank you, no further questions your honor."

The prosecutor turns her back to Mrs. Carson and returns to her chair. Everett half stands from his seat and says "no questions your honor."

The judge turns to look at Mrs. Carson and nods to her. "You may step down."

Mrs. Carson whispers her gratitude and rises from her seat. She slowly walks to the center of the room, turning once more to look at Hyde. Again, he meets her eyes and sees her disdain towards him. As she walks down the narrow aisle in the court room, she brings a pair of dark sunglasses to cover her eyes and walks out.

Everett turns his head to look at Hyde and, seeing the expression on his face, pats him on the back. He leans towards him a bit and says, "I told you this was going to be hard, but I need you to hang in there."

Hyde nods and straightens his back. He turns for a moment to look at the people sitting behind him. There, in the same spot as before, sits the frail blonde girl. She smiles at him and nods her head slightly. Hyde furrows his forehead quizzically and turns back around.

**Author's Note: A shorter chapter, but I think it's an important one. I'm trying to connect the dots and bring the story together. You'll find out who this blonde girl is in the next chapter (finally) and maybe even hear from Hyde. I've concluded that there are just three chapters left so stay tuned to see how things turn out for our dear boy. **


	18. Chapter 18

Everett reaches across the table and pours himself a glass of water. He glances over towards Hyde and catches him twirling his thumbs and gently tapping his foot against the carpeted floor. One. One-two. One. One-two. The tapping distracts Everett for a second until Hyde looks up and makes eye contact with him. "Stop" mouths Everett and Hyde quickly sits still. Everett straightens up and sips his cold water slowly.

The prosecutor is showing the jury a picture of the crime scene. Everett has seen the image several times by now. A large stain of dried blood has seeped through the beige carpet and several pieces of tape outline the positions the three bodies were found. It hadn't bothered him at first, to see the positions of the limbs or that there were three people dead. The amount of blood at the scene bothered him though. For some reason, seeing the remains of what happened didn't sit well with him. Truthfully, the image was almost enough to make him pass on the case.

"We would like to call to the stand Joy Elliot" the prosecutor calls out once she has finished distributing the image to the jury. Everett continues to sit still and from his right side he can see a slim figure making its way towards the front of the room. He looks on as the girl claims her seat at the witness' stand. He can tell she's nervous by the way the corner of her lips quiver and her hands rest folded on her lap.

He turns slightly to look at Hyde and immediately realizes he doesn't recognize the girl. Everett furrows his brow and looks back at her.

"Ms. Elliot, thank you for agreeing to be a part of this trial" the prosecutor starts, looking directly at the girl.

She nods, "I didn't really have a choice" she says with a slight smile.

"Yes, but I still appreciate you being here."

"Thanks" the girl replies.

Everett watches as she looks around the room, looking everywhere but towards Hyde's direction. He leans over a bit and whispers "do you recognize her?"

Hyde shakes his head. "I've seen her before, but I can't remember where?"

Everett nods his head and flips to a blank page of his notepad. Towards the top he writes _Joy Elliot. _He keeps his pen on the page, ready to write anything important.

"How about you start by telling us how you know the defendant?"

The girl smiles once again and slightly shrugs her shoulder. "I wouldn't say I know him. I'm a friend of his roommate, Jeff."

Everett turns once more to look at Hyde and sees his eyes widening a bit. _Shit _Everett thinks. Every ounce of hope that this girl would be a plot to make Hyde look bad has just gone out the window.

"Okay, so tell us then how you came to be involved in this case" the prosecutor urges on, obviously following a pattern of questioning the two of them must have practiced over and over.

"I was visiting Jess one afternoon when I saw him-" the girl says pointing at Hyde. The prosecutor quickly intervenes.

"Let the record show Ms. Elliot is pointing at the defendant" she says at which point the stenographer quickly writes that in her pad.

"Right," the girl continues, "when I saw the defendant walk in with a girl. There seemed to be some tension between them."

"Can you describe the girl for us?" the prosecutor asks the blonde girl.

"Um..she was thin, had black hair and dark eyes. Her skin was really pale and she wore a lot of black."

The prosecutor pulls out a picture out of her large stack and shows it to Joy. "Is this the girl?"

Joy nods, "yes that's her."

The prosecutor turns around and shows the picture to everyone. "Let the record show that the witness has identified Chrissy Powell as the girl the defendant was with that day."

"Why do you say there was tension between them?"

The girl takes a breath and turns to look up at the judge. He glances at her, his straight face not giving away any emotion. She quickly turns away from him and looks back at the prosecutor. "The girl, Chrissy, was on the phone and he, the defendant, was sitting next to her. He didn't say anything but she rolled her eyes a lot when she looked over at him. Also, when she hung up she told him to...Sorry, can I curse in here?"

"If it's a direct quote, it's admissible."

The girl eyes the prosecutor curiously for a moment, almost as though she doesn't understand the answer. When the prosecutor makes a hand gesture to proceed, she nods her head. "she told the defendant to "fuck off" and then went to her bedroom I believe."

Everett brings his left hand to his forehead and rubs it. He shakes his head and looks over at Hyde who has gone back to fiddling his thumbs. He leans once more towards Hyde and whispers "is this bad?"

Hyde stops twirling his thumbs and leans closer to Everett. "It could be, but that girl was high as hell that day man. She was shooting up heroin with Jeff."

Everett quickly sits straighter and scribbles a few notes on his pad.

"Did you happen to hear what Chrissy was saying on the phone?"

Joy shakes her head no. "I wasn't really paying attention, but I do remember she saying something about them meeting up with a guy who would help them. Jeff told me she and the defendant were pretty strapped for some cash and were desperate."

"Do you remember who they were supposed to meet with?"

Once again the girl shakes her head. "It's been a long time so I couldn't say for sure who it was."

"Maybe the name Ralph rings a bell?" the prosecutor says.

Everett quickly stands up, "objection your honor, baiting the witness."

"Sustained" the judge says from his podium. Everett takes his seat once more and catches the smirk on the prosecutor's face.

"No further questions your honor" she says before turning around and walking back to her table.

Everett quickly rises from his seat. "Ms. Elliot," he says as soon as he's on his feet, "what exactly were you doing at my client's apartment that day?" he asks.

"Like I said, I was there visiting Jeff, his roommate."

"How do you know Jeff?" Everett asks.

"I met him a few days prior, at a club over on the West Village."

"Great. Do you remember what you and Jeff did that day? In the apartment I mean?"

Joy looks down at her folded hands and inhales. She raises her gaze once more to look at Everett. "We mostly talked. He told me about his love of art and showed me his record collection."

"Did you and Jeff partake in any illegal activities that afternoon?" Everett questions. He takes a few steps towards her stand and rests his arm on it. His head is tilted slightly to the right as he awaits her response.

Joy's smile returns, this time wider than before. "Yes" she simply says.

"What exactly, did you do that afternoon?"

"Drugs."

"Do you remember which drugs you took that day?"

"Heroin. Marijuana. Cocaine. I think that's it" she replies.

"Was this before or after my client and Ms. Powell were there?" Everett asks. He maintains his stance and a smirk grows on his face as well.

"Before _and _after" she says.

"So, based on that fact alone, it's safe to say that your testimony isn't credible."

"Maybe, maybe not."

"Try definitely not" Everett replies and he pushes off the stand and walks towards the middle of the room.

"In that case, you should also re-evaluate everything your client's told you as well" Joy replies. She straightens her back.

"Why is that?" Everett asks, his tone firm enough to appear menacing.

Joy looks up, squarely into Everett's eyes and her smile disappears. "I hear he's quite the drug addict himself."

"Objection" Everett quickly says to the judge.

"Sustained."

**Author's Note: How did you guys like this chapter? I was worried writing it because so many of you became curious about the blonde girl (and suggested that maybe it was Laurie which would have been interesting). I hope this wasn't too anticlimactic and makes sense in the scheme of things. If you don't remember her, she made a really quick appearance back in chapter 3. In the next chapter, we'll hear from Hyde and perhaps a decision from the jury...STAY TUNED!**


	19. Chapter 19

"Just go in there and do it exactly as we have gone over it. Do not get nervous or answer any incriminating questions. Avoid being too specific and we should be fine" Everett says to Hyde. It's just a few minutes before they are scheduled to go into the court room where Hyde will finally be put on the witness' stand.

"I'll try" Hyde replies. He smooths out the sleeves of his jacket and looks down at the polished black shoes on his feet. They are, without a doubt, the nicest shoes he has worn and he is grateful that Everett lend them to him.

"Do more than try. This is the last step and we have to do it right."

"Way to ease the nerves there" Hyde says sarcastically.

Everett rolls his eyes. "We have a few minutes, lets run this one more time" he tells Hyde who simply nods and gets ready for another round of "practice questioning."

Inside the court room, Hyde shifts around on the cushioned chair and looks around the room. Everything seems bigger and more intimidating from this perspective. Now, he is closer to the jurors, who all seem to scrutinize every movement he makes. From his spot, he can smell the faint musk cologne the judge wears and can even make out the sound of the stenographer's pencil scratching against the paper. Hyde takes a moment to look over at Everett who nods his head and signals for him to sit straighter. Hyde adjusts his posture and waits as patiently as he can for the prosecutor to begin her line of questioning.

It didn't take long for her to take her place in the middle of the room, mere inches from Hyde. In her hands, she held a long, rolled up sheet of paper.

"Mr. Hyde," she begins, "I would like to save us all a lot of time so I'll cut right to the chase." She begins slowly unrolling the paper and then holds it up for Hyde to see. "Do you recognize this?" she asks looking directly into his eyes.

Hyde stares at the drawing on the paper and his eyes widen. He can feel his heart beat increase and is sure everyone in the room can hear it.

"Based on your reaction, can I conclude that you know what this is?" the prosecutor asks.

Hyde slowly nods his head. "Yes" he answers and turns to look at Everett whose face shows no sign of emotions.

"Can you please tell us what this is?"

Hyde takes a deep breath, exhales and sits forward on his chair. "It's a floor plan."

"A floor plan of what?"

"The Carson's house" he replies.

The prosecutor nods her head and walks over to the jurors. She slowly shows the plan to each over member, who take a few minutes to analyze it.

"How did you happen to come across it?" she asks, directing her attention back towards Hyde.

"Ralph had it and showed it to me and Chrissy."

"Did he tell you why he had it?"

Hyde nods his head.

"For the record, please" the prosecutor says, urging Hyde to vocalize his gesture.

"Yes" he says.

"Can you tell us what he said?"

"He just said the plan was part of a plan."

"What plan?"

"To go into the Carson's and take a few things from their place."

"So the plan was to steal from the Carson's, is that correct?"

"Yes."

"So, Mr. Hyde, what role did you play in this plan?" the prosecutor asks.

Hyde thinks for a moment about Everett's advice to stay as vague as possible and to not incriminate himself.

"I was caught in a tough spot because Chrissy agreed to go along with the plan and I didn't trust Ralph. He seemed manipulative and I couldn't leave her alone with him" Hyde answers.

"Why didn't you talk her out of it then?"

"I tried, many times, but Chrissy wasn't the kind of person who backed out of anything, no matter how bad it was."

"So you went along with it?"

"I had no choice" he answers, knowing that he's not being entirely honest.

"Didn't you?"

"No," he continues, "I couldn't leave her with him and as stupid as it was, I felt like I had to protect her."

"Okay, I want to just jump ahead a bit to the night of Mr. Carson's murder. Can you tell us what happened that night?"

Hyde nods his head and takes a deep breath once more. He thinks about the night, months ago, that led him to this moment. Slowly, he begins telling everyone in the room about arriving at the Carson's home, entering it once they left and going through their belongings. He makes sure to emphasize how mad Ralph got when he couldn't open their safe and the gun he handed to Hyde. He tells them about Mr. Carson coming home and pleading for his life to be spared.

"He said he wouldn't call the police if we just left."

"Did you believe him?" the prosecutor asks.

"I wanted to."

"But you didn't."

"No."

"Why's that?" the prosecutor questions. She walks closer to hims stand and furrows her forehead. Hyde can see a few gray hairs mixed in with the blonde and her bright blue eyes filled with determination.

"I just knew he would call. I don't know how I knew, I just did."

"Okay, what happened then?"

Hyde pauses for a moment. Even now, almost a year later, he can hear the gun going off and can see the look in Mr. Carson's face as the bullet penetrated his body.

"The gun went off."

"Who shot the gun?"

"I...I don't remember" Hyde answers and automatically feels his stomach tighten. He knows lying under oath is not a good idea, but he can't hang himself. He looks over at Everett and the both know that whatever happens after this point is out of their hands.

"You don't?" the prosecutor asks incredulously.

"No, it's a blur. All I remember is Chrissy yelling and then his body hitting the floor."

"I see," she presses on, "what happened to Chrissy and Ralph then?"

Hyde looks down at his lap and hears the words "fight on" repeating over and over.

"After Mr. Carson was dead, the police got there and Ralph panicked. He knew it was all over, that we had no way of getting out of there. He kept saying that he chooses his own destiny. He just...he put the gun to his head. Chrissy...I don't know why she did it."

"Did what?"

"Shoot herself."

"So Ralph and Chrissy both took their own lives? You had nothing to do with it?"

"No. Absolutely not. The only think I'm guilty of is going through with the stupid plan. If I could change what happened, I would would. In a second. It was stupid and it cost three people their lives, it tore apart a family and look at where I am. I should have been able to get out of it."

The prosecutor nods her head and starts pacing around the front of the room. Hyde watches as her brown heels shuffle against the carpet, making small dents in it with every step.

"One last thing Mr. Hyde. The murder weapon turned out to be registered under your name. Why's that?"

"I don't know anything about that" Hyde answers immediately, making sure to look right into her eyes.

"So you didn't buy the gun?"

"I did not."

"Thank you. No further questions."

Hyde relaxes his muscles and sits back on his chair, a sense of relief flowing through his body. He looks up at the judge who motions towards Everett. Hyde then looks at his lawyer a few feet away. Everett is shaking his head from side to side and gets off his chair.

"No questions your honor" he says and sits back down. Hyde stares at him, confused about why he's not taking the opportunity to undo anything the prosecutor might have done.

"Thank you" the judge says to Hyde.

Hyde nods his head and gets off his chair. He walks over to Everett's table and retakes his usual seat next to him. There, Hyde leans over towards Everett and asks why he didn't question him.

"You did good up there, I didn't have to." Hyde eyes him, still unsure of his tactics, but decides to drop the subject.

The next half hour goes by quickly. Hyde listens to both sides deliver their closing statements and the judge announcing that the jury will now begin deliberation. Hyde casts one last look at the twelve men and women. These complete strangers are now responsible for his life, and that doesn't make him feel very secure.

"You did good" Everett says once more. Hyde nods his head and both men shake hands. A guard walks over to the table. Hyde rises and allows the man to escort him out of the court room.

The next day, Hyde is back in his cell, lying in bed as Nick explains the details of his own case when a guard comes up to the cell doors.

"Hyde, lets go" the man says, offering no further explanations.

"Where are we going?" Hyde asks, sitting up.

"We don't have time kid. Get up and lets go."

Hyde and Nick share a quizzical look as Hyde walks towards the guard. He extends out his hands so the man can place handcuffs on him before opening the door. Once outside the cell, the heavy metal doors close loudly behind him, setting his nerves on edge.

"What's going on?" Hyde asks.

"The jury made a decision" the guard informs Hyde.

"What? Already? It's only been eight hours. That can't be good can it?"

"I don't know kid. I'm just supposed to let you get dressed and take you to the court."

Hyde doesn't reply and cooperatively allows the man to lead him outside the jail and into a car that will take them.

It takes just over thirty minutes for them to reach the court lobby. Hyde quickly spots Everett there, holding a garment bag and the shiny black shoes.

"What's going on man?" Hyde asks Everett, hoping to get some answers from him.

"We don't have a lot of time. Go get dressed and I'll meet you in there" Everett says and before Hyde can respond, he's taking off to meet with the judge and prosecutor.

Hyde is led to the bathroom where he rushes to put on his suit and shoes. It becomes harder to focus as frustration and nerves begin to consume him. How could they deliberate so quickly? What the hell is about to happen to him once he steps into that room?

"Lets go kid" the guard calls out from outside the stall.

Within five minutes, Hyde is in the court room standing next to Everett as a jury member holds up a piece of paper.

"We, the jury, find the defendant, Steven James Hyde," the juror begins. He looks up from the paper and looks at Hyde. For a few seconds, they keep up the eye contact and once the juror looks back down at the sheet on his hands, Hyde inhales and holds his breath.

**Author's Note: We're almost there! The last chapter is coming up next. I'm hoping to get it up by Friday. I know how frustrating cliff hangers can be, but I hope you all stay tuned to see what's going to happen to Hyde. Until then. Thanks for reading!**


	20. Chapter 20

Hyde walks slowly as he is escorted into the quiet room. His heart beat speeds up with each step he takes and his breathing becomes shallow. It's been nine years since the worst night of his life. Nine years that he's spent reflecting about his life and the poor decisions he's made throughout it. Somewhere down the road, he strayed away from everything he hoped to become and became exactly what everyone else told him he would be; a carbon copy of his parents. For nine years, he pictured Bud and Edna, thought about what they might be doing, if they were even alive.

He shakes the thoughts from his head and walks over to the table. He looks around the unfamiliar room, poorly decorated, almost empty. For some reason he expected it to look different. A few minutes later, a tall woman walks in, her black dress is wrapped tightly around her thin body. Her dark. long hair is neatly pulled up in a bun. Her eyes are a strange combination of striking and dull. Immediately, he makes eye contact with her. Her steps quicken and she's soon taking a seat opposite him.

Hyde looks on as she folds her arms across her chest, her eyes never leaving his. Her jaw stiffens and her thin lips curl in a way that shows just how guarded she is. He looks down at her hands and sees a silver band on her left ring finger.

"I appreciate you meeting with me" he starts as he looks back into her eyes.

She remains quiet and straightens her back.

"I wasn't sure you would be willing to see me" he continues, trying to get her to talk to him.

Still nothing. She lifts her chin and tilts her head a bit to the right.

"I honestly don't know what to say" he says. His shoulders drop as does his gaze.

"Then this meeting is a bit pointless isn't it?" she finally says.

Hyde looks back up and sees the anger in her eyes. The dullness is no longer there. It is replaced by the same look he saw nine years ago. "I'll try to make it worth it."

"I doubt you'll be able to."

"I'm sorry" Hyde says quickly, not wanting to give her the opportunity to control the conversation. Easily, she can take charge and tell him what a horrible person he is and how he's ruined her life. He won't give her that chance because for nine years, he's done nothing but think about what he would say to her if he ever saw her again.

"Of course you are" she replies.

"I am. You probably don't believe me, and you have no reason to, but I am. I think about that night every single day of my life and I wish I could change it, but I can't."

"No, you can't. You have no idea-" she starts and immediately her voice cracks. She stops herself and looks up at the ceiling.

"No, I don't know what it's been like for you. I can't imagine what you've gone through. All I can say is that I regret what happened and I'm sorry for ruining your life."

She looks down at her hands and starts twirling her ring with her left thumb. Hyde watches as it rotates on her long, manicured nails.

"That man...you don't know the kind of man he was. He was-" she starts but Hyde interrupts her.

"Mrs. Carson, I'm sure your husband was great but-" he says before she interrupts him.

"No. You wanted to talk but I need you to listen. The only way I'm getting any closure is by making sure you know who my husband was. He was an incredible father. My daughter, she waited up every night just so he would tuck her into bed and read her a story. He would would sit through her tea parties and wear silly hats because it made her happy. He taught my son to ride a bike and would bake him football shaped cakes for his birthday. They were awful cakes," she says and gives a sad laugh, "but he really tried. He let my brother move in with us when he was laid off and paid for my parent's medical bills..."

Hyde watches as she becomes silent, probably thinking about all the great things her husband did. He felt his stomach drop as she kept adding to the list of amazing qualities. Would he feel as horrible if he had killed a lowlife like himself instead of such an outstanding person?

"We were married for thirteen years and every year he would recreate our first dated tell me how lucky he was. He didn't have the best relationship with his parents and was really grateful to have a family. A real family. He didn't deserve what happened to him" she says, tears filling her eyes.

Hyde takes a deep breath and starts reaching across the table to hold her hand but quickly realizes what he's doing and pulls back. He thinks about Mr. Carson having a bad relationship with his parents and for a split second, thinks that the two might have gotten along.

"Why did you do it?" she asks taking Hyde by surprise.

"I don't know" he answers, looking away from her.

"You owe me at least that don't you think?"

"Mrs. Carson, I was a stupid kid. I got caught up in this lifestyle and was in over my head. One minute I'm close to packing my crap and going back home because I was broke and the next..."

"That's your excuse? You were in over your head?"

"No, I'm not here to make excuses. I take responsibility over my actions and I should have been man enough to walk away from it, but I wasn't. It's taken nine years to accept my poor decisions. I don't justify what happened, I can't. All I can say is that I am genuinely sorry and remorseful. I don't expect to ever be forgiven, but this seemed like the right thing to do."

"The right thing for who exactly?"

Hyde looks back at her. Her fierce eyes piercing right down to his core, intimidating every part of him. "I don't know" is all he says which makes her smirk. The smirk is angry and hard.

"There seems to be a lot you don't know. Let me tell you what _I _know. I know that you broke into my house and killed my husband. You deprived my children of growing up with their father. What _I _know is that no matter how many times you apologize for it, I will never be able to forgive you. You...you are a monster."

There is the dreaded word. The word he is still afraid of being labeled, though he is sure it's one he deserves. "I'm sorry you feel that way," he starts, "and I understand why you can't accept my apology. I don't think I would be able to forgive myself either if I were in your shoes. I am sorry and wish you the best."

She slowly shakes her head from side to side and starts rising from her seat. As she begins to turn from him, she looks down into his eyes and says, "Your actions...they're your consequences." She turns once more and leaves him thinking about those words.

Later that day, Hyde holds the ink-filled page in his hands, reading it once more, making sure the short message reflects everything he's thinking about.

_Mrs. Forman, _

_I hadn't realized how difficult it is to make amends to those you hurt. It's even harder to have your apologies and efforts be rejected or ignored. I guess it's something that happens when you make such big mistakes. I'm not sure why I was expecting things to go differently. Perhaps I am too optimistic (ironic isn't it?) or maybe I'm just becoming hopeful that things will finally become better. _

_I noticed yesterday that my 27th birthday is next week and I know it's premature, and probably bad luck to tell you, but my wish will be to finally be happy with the person I've turned out to be. Maybe, if it's not too much to ask, you can blow a candle out for me._

_Tell everyone I said hello. I miss you all._

_Steven_

He gently folds the paper and inserts it into the envelope. He neatly writes the Forman's address followed by his own:

FCI Otisville  
Federal Correctional Institution  
Otisville, NY 10963

**Author's Note: Congratulations on completing the story! I'm sorry for the late update, my laptop is out getting fixed for a while. I hope you liked the story, even with things ending as they did for Hyde. I struggled with where he should be in the end, but really felt like this was the only way to go given what we know he did. Hopefully you don't hate me too much lol. I had an amazing time writing this and am happy with how it turned out. I might not be writing a long story for some time, maybe a few short ones once in a while. Til then, thanks for reading!**


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